Mon Mar 24 00:33:38 2008

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Sun Devils pull away from Owls

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College Park, MD (Sports Network) - Lauren Lacey scored 14 points and the sixth-seeded Arizona State Sun Devils used a strong second half to outlast the 11th-seeded Temple Owls, 61-54, in the first round of the Oklahoma City Region of the NCAA Tournament.

Lacey knocked down 5-of-9 shots from the floor for ASU (22-10), which will tussle with third-seeded Duke in the second round on Tuesday. Jill Noe added 12 points, and Briann January chipped in with 10 in the winning effort.

Ashley Morris paced Temple (21-13) in defeat with a game-high 21 points, while Lady Comfort posted 11 points and six boards.

The first half ended in a 26-26 tie, as the Owls shot 45.8 percent from the field and the Sun Devils converted on 7-of-10 free-throw attempts.

ASU came out of the break with something to prove and it used a 13-0 run and some late free throws to capture the seven-point victory.

For the game, the Sun Devils shot 48.9 percent from the floor and forced Temple into 19 costly turnovers.