No. 17 Arizona State women beat Southern 69-47

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Courtney Ekmark scored 19 points Friday night and made 3 of 7 from 3-point range to help No. 17 Arizona State beat Southern 69-47 for its fourth straight win.

The Sun Devils (6-2) started strong, closing the first quarter with a 15-2 run to lead 24-6 at the end of the period. The Jaguars (2-5) outscored Arizona State 28-27 in the second half but got the deficit only as close as 19 after the break.

Arizona State closed the first half with 10 straight points and scored the first four of the second half to take its largest lead at 46-19.

The Sun Devils had a 39-20 rebounding advantage and outscored the Jaguars 30-12 in the paint. Arizona State made 19 of 26 free throws and Southern made just 3 of 8.

Skylar O'Bear led Southern with 16 points.