Arizona State Prepares to welcome Jackson State on November 2

TEMPE- For the first time in 222 days, the Arizona State Sun Devils women's basketball team will begin its new season at home, welcoming the Jackson State Tigers on Monday.

When asked how it feels to start a new season, head coach Molly Miller said she had a chance to catch up with Charli Turner Thorne, the longtime former head coach of Arizona State women's basketball, who has been attending practices.

Miller and Turner Thorne also crossed paths this past summer while working with the Phoenix Mercury broadcasting team.

"It's been fun developing chemistry in the summer and then working on our craft in terms of getting the team concepts down," Miller said Tuesday. "From a defensive standpoint, that obviously is a certain brand; from an offensive standpoint, I think we're evolving a lot quicker. It was really fun because Charli [Turner Thorne] came to practice the other day, and she said, 'I've been to a lot of practices, and y'all are actually further along than most.' That was good to hear from her."

When the Sun Devils landed one of the top transfers in February, guard Ruby Whitehorn, Miller and the coaching staff saw the value she brings on both ends of the court.

After observing the coaching system and atmosphere in Tempe over the past few months, she finally has the opportunity to "get back to the big lights in front of a crowd, in front of my family," and is thrilled to showcase her skills.

"I mean, it's just an overwhelming feeling of joy watching them play last year," Whitehorn told Echo from the Buttes. "Was just getting me more excited to be able to play this year, and now that it's finally game day soon, I just couldn't be more grateful and blessed for the opportunity that I've been given."

One of the newcomers, sophomore guard Ella Ryan, expects the atmosphere at Desert Financial Arena to be "electric" and is excited to be part of what the Sun Devils are building toward for years to come.

Since Miller took over as head coach in March 2025, many players who came to Tempe have noticed a positive shift in the program’s culture and success.

"I want to play here because Molly [Miller] was excited about me from the jump," Ryan told Echo from the Buttes. "From the very first time I stepped foot onto campus, she was showing that she believed in me, that she wanted me here, and she knew that I could play at this level. And when I came here and felt that for my coach, it was just amazing. I had a great year [at Quinnipiac University] last year, and when my coach [Tricia Fabbri] retired, I knew that it was time for me to branch out and see what else was out there. When she gave me this opportunity, and I had an amazing visit, I really couldn't resist, and I knew that I wanted to be a part of a team that she was building."

"I mean everyone around here is about the culture," Whitehorn added. "It's about us and sticking together and stuff like that. And we've become very family-oriented, and we took time to get to know each other over the summer. So it's just a very welcoming place."

According to Talia Goodman of On3, the Sun Devils were defeated by the USC Trojans, 98-75, in a closed scrimmage.

Asked about facing two high-caliber women's basketball programs—the Trojans and the Oregon Ducks—Miller said the matchups gave Arizona State an early-season test before nonconference play began.

"It [exhibition games] was very intentional to test us early," Miller said. "When you play a team, and you're winning by 20, 30, things get swept under the rug that you might not have gotten exposed, as we got exposed against USC and Oregon. That was a high-level team, and there were some things we needed to fix. Again, our offense looked pretty good at times, but I want to pick up our defense a bit and understand how to guard the best players in the country. And those are obviously two teams that I think will be in the top 25, and that's our measuring stick. That's the barometer to where we want to go."

As the Sun Devils prepare to welcome the Tigers at home, Miller emphasized the importance of finding the right rotations from starters to the bench while continuing to build relationships with returners and newcomers.

Another important takeaway from facing USC and Oregon was that Arizona State can use exhibition games throughout the season to work on areas where the team was exposed.

"I wouldn't say a starting five is solidified, but now kind of trying to find that normal rotation of roles, that's all happening right now," Miller said. "It's really fun to have these exhibition games, which have really challenged us. Maybe exposed some weaknesses that wouldn't have been exposed otherwise against a different team, and we can work on those."