Arizona State Women's Basketball Continues Building Tournament Case

The Sun Devils are off to a historic start to the season - will it finish the way the team hopes?

Arizona State Head Coach Molly Miller yells to her players during a game against the Eastern Washington Eagles at Desert Financial Arena in Tempe, on Nov. 8, 2025. | Diannie Chavez/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

TEMPE -- Molly Miller's Arizona State Sun Devils officially moved to 17-3 on the season following a physical Wednesday night battle with West Virginia on the road.

The loss didn't impact the Sun Devils too harshly, as they entered Wednesday placed at 44th in the official NCAA NET rankings, which should firmly place them in the field of 68, although they have yet to be seen as firmly in the NCAA tournament field.

Arizona State on SI discusses the Sun Devils' quest to reach their first NCAA tournament since the 2018-19 season below.

Arizona State's Tournament Hopes in the Air?

ESPN bracket expert Charlie Creme has moved Arizona State up from the "last four in" territory into the "last four byes" following the Sun Devils securing a massive 67-51 victory over the Kansas Jayahwks last Saturday.

Creme currently has the Sun Devils as a 10 seed in region four (one of two based in Sacramento) - with a first-round game against seven seed Nebraska with the winner presumably going on to play Vanderbilt.

The 18-2 record to begin the season would lead many to believe that Arizona State would be seeded higher at this point. However, the 29-point loss to TCU, as well as a lack of "quality" wins are holding them back to this point.

Miller's instant success cannot be overstated despite a mixed perception from those on the outside, with the first-year head coach crafting a roster largely on the fly - including a strong mix of senior leadership, high-upside underclassmen transfers, and returning players from last season's team.

The 39 year old coach has seen the culture that she set out to install take a firm grip in Tempe from the very start, and this has undoubtedly reflected in what has been seen thus far, particularly when it comes to the hard-nosed defense that the roster rolls out on a reliable basis.

Big 12 is Seemingly Wide Open

While securing the Big 12 regular season title appears to be out of question for ASU, they have a very strong chance to finish inside of the top five in the league standings.

The Sun Devils are set to face a variety of Big 12 opponents that they should come out with victories against, including Arizona, Houston, and Kansas State.

They will also face elite competition in the weeks ahead, with road games against Baylor and Texas Tech, while also taking on the recently struggling Iowa State Cyclones.

ASU Sun Devils guards Last-Tear Poa (13) and Marley Washenitz (11) defend Coppin State Bald Eagles guard Kyley Gary-Grayson (10) at Desert Financial Arena on Nov. 3, 2025. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Read more on why the Arizona State men's basketball team will exceed expectations in the 2025-26 season here, and on why the bright future of the football program isn’t dimmed by the loss to Arizona here.

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