Arizona State Women's Basketball Faces Uphill Climb to Reach Tournament

The Sun Devils are heading into the final game of the regular season on the cusp of being on the right side of the bubble.

Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Molly Miller watches from the bench during the fourth quarter against Iowa State in the Big-12 women’s basketball at Hilton Coliseum on Feb. 18, 2026, in Ames, Iowa | Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

TEMPE -- Molly Miller's Arizona State Sun Devils (22-8, 9-8 Big 12) are set to partake in the final game of their 2025-26 regular season on Sunday afternoon - taking on #20 Texas Tech in the process.

The Sun Devils have looked the part of an NCAA tournament team for the majority of the season, but a weak non-conference schedule has taken over headlines in recent weeks as far as a bid to the 68-team field is concerned.

Arizona State faces an uphill climb to get back onto the right side of the bubble - ASU on SI explores the team's tenuous bubble placement below.

ASU Sun Devils forward McKinna Brackens (21) drives past Coppin State Bald Eagles guard Kylie Wells (5) at Desert Financial Arena on Nov. 3, 2025. | Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Arizona State Currently on Outside Looking in

ESPN bracket expert Charlie Creme currently has Arizona State as the fourth team out of the tournament field as of Friday - the Sun Devils trail Richmond, Utah, and South Dakota State at the moment, with the contest against Texas Tech looming large

"Arizona State also tumbled, losing to BYU at home. The Sun Devils desperately need to beat Texas Tech on Sunday to stay alive for an at-large spot."

The implication here appears to be that Arizona State needs to win to not only make a case to get back into the field, but also to stay in serious consideration heading into the Big 12 tournament. Does an Arizona State loss on Sunday lead to the team needing to make a deep run in the tournament

Sunday's game against Texas Tech is vital beyond the resumé boost, as a victory would ensure a top eight spot in the conference tournament bracket - making the path to secure more wins easier to attain.

There are some other questionable topics of conversation around the Sun Devils being on the outside of the projected field in this case - first of which is Colorado being slotted several spots ahead of ASU despite the Buffaloes dropping the lone game between the two by 16 points back in December. Arizona State also currently trails Utah in the bracket despite sweeping the season series between the two teams, while Kansas is waiting in the wings despite suffering a blowout loss at the hands of the Sun Devils.

There's a general lack of clarity as far as what ASU's ultimate fate will be this season, but Miller's team will continue to fight until the end - expect stars such as McKinna Brackens and Gabby Elliott to step up in a major way on Sunday.

Read more on the bold strategy that head coach Bobby Hurley employed with comments on 1/21 here, and on why Arizona State may have saved the season with the win over Cincinnati on Saturday here..

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