TEMPE, Ariz. - A nightmare scenario played out for the Cougars on Friday the 13th as Washington State fell 68-49 to No. 18 Arizona State while suffering more than just a loss on the scoreboard. The loss for the Cougars (8-9, 3-3 Pac-12) snapped a three-game winning streak while the Sun Devils (13-3, 4-1 Pac-12) won for the 11th time in their last 12 contests.

In the first quarter the Cougars appeared as if they would be up to the task of taking on the 18th-ranked Sun Devils on the road as WSU came out hot hitting their first four shots while finishing shooting 53.8% from the floor in the period. However, the game would come to a screeching halt when freshman Cameron Fernandez suffered an injury in the quarter's final seconds while taking a charge that caused a nearly 30-minute delay in the game. The loss of Fernandez and the delay in the game caused the Cougars to cool off, turning a fast-paced shootout into a dog-fight that the Sun Devils proved to be more equipped to handle.

In a game that saw 46 combined fouls called and the pace of play slowed to a near halt, the Cougs could never find their rhythm against the Sun Devils, who used a huge advantage on the offensive glass and a massive advantage on trips to the free throw line to offset a lack of field goals early. Defensively, WSU held up in the first half despite early foul trouble as the Cougs did not allow a field goal from the Sun Devils for nearly eight minutes spanning between the first quarter and second quarter. However, rebounding and the free throw line proved to be the difference as the Sun Devils made 14-of-23 from the line in the first 20 minutes to take a one-point lead into the half-time break.

Out of the lockerroom, the Cougars continued to struggle as open looks rimmed out while the Sun Devils began to find their rhythm both inside and out. After trading the lead 13 times in the first half, the Cougars could never close the gap in the second half as the Sun Devils pushed their lead to double-digits before the Cougars' last hopes were dashed when freshman-sensation Chanelle Molina suffered a leg injury midway through the fourth quarter. Molina, the reigning two-time Pac-12 Freshman of the Week, was fouled on a drive through the paint causing her to land awkwardly. For the Cougs, it was yet another injury in an already injury-cursed season that took down the team's two top threats in Borislava Hristova and Louise Brown.

Prior to the injury, Molina had scored 13 points to record her 12th-straight double-digit scoring effort which tied for the second-longest streak for any Cougar freshman in program history. She would be the lone Cougar to reach double-figures with redshirt-sophomore Nike McClure finishing just short with eight points while tying her career-best of nine rebounds. McClure also added two blocks, two steals, and dished out three of the Cougars' 14 assists. Senior Ivana Kmetovska saw her streak of double-digit scoring come to an end as the fourth-year forward was held to just seven points marking the first time in Pac-12 play she did not reach at least 10 points.

The Cougs would finish the day 8-of-16 from the line with half of the 16 attempts coming in the game's final minutes when the contest was already out of hand. The Sun Devils nearly doubled the Cougars' attempts from the line with 31 attempts, hitting 21 of those freebies.

Sophie Brunner led the Sun Devils with a game-high 20 points including hitting 7-of-13 shots from the field and 5-of-5 from the line. She also grabbed a career-best 15 rebounds helping the Sun Devils to a 47-to-35 rebounding edge. Reili Richardson made her living at the line for the Sun Devils by making 8-of-9 as she finished with 15 points while Quinn Dornstauder ended her day with 11 points.

The 49 points for the Cougars marked a season-low in scoring for WSU as the team finished shooting just .317 (19-of-60) in the game. The Sun Devils finished shooting .412 (21-of-51) while hitting 5-of-8 from deep.

Washington State will look to regroup in Tucson, Sunday, Jan. 15, when the Cougars face off against Arizona. The game is scheduled for 12 p.m. MT.