Around the MWC women’s basketball
Utah remains on top in the conference standings and is one win
away from clinching the regular season conference title. New Mexico
and CSU are the hottest teams in the conference as both have
four-game winning streaks. Their streaks coupled with UNLV’s recent
slump (two losses in four games) have made the race for second a
close one. Here’s a recap on last week’s action and a preview of
what’s to come: (Note: The team’s accompanying number represents
its place in the Mountain West standings)
No. 1 Utah vs. No. 8 Air Force
Despite an air attack by the Falcons (3-20 in the MWC, 0-10
overall), Utah (20-5, 10-1) continued its dominance over Air Force
in a 73-65 loss. The Utes have never lost to the Falcons in
conference history, and Air Force is still looking for its first
conference win of the season.
Letricia Castillo led the Falcons with 14 points. Amoy Jackson
had 10 points and eight rebounds. Carley Marshall led all scorers
with 21 points from Utah and teammate Kim Smith had 14 points.
UP NEXT:
The Falcons make their final regular season road trip to San
Diego State on Thursday, while Utah will battle BYU on Saturday at
3 p.m.
No. 2 New Mexico at No. 6 Brigham Young
New Mexico (16-7, 8-2) squeaked by BYU 60-59 in Provo, Utah, on
Saturday. The win is the fourth straight for the Lobos, and the
loss drops BYU to 14-11, 4-7.
The Lobos got off to a strong start taking a 25-14 lead, but the
Cougars rallied back and went into the locker room up 34-31.
The two teams traded blows throughout an entertaining second
half, which featured eight lead changes and seven ties. Mandi Moore
scored three points in the final minute, including a free throw
with 19.6 seconds left in the game, to help New Mexico secure the
win.
Lindsey Ardnt led New Mexico with 16 points and eight rebounds
and was named co-MWC athlete of the week.
UP NEXT:
New Mexico heads to UNLV this Thursday, and the Cougars will
continue MWC action on the road next week, playing at in-state
rival Utah on Saturday.
No. 3 UNLV at No. 4 Colorado State
Colorado State (6-5, 15-9) pulled off an upset against UNLV
(7-3, 18-5) Saturday night in Moby arena. UNLV trailed the Rams
40-22 at the half and managed to cut the deficit to nine with four
minutes left to play, but the Rams couldn’t be stopped.
Randee Henry ended the contest with 16 points and seven
rebounds, while Sheena Moore added 15 points and Sherry McCracklin
finished with nine points and seven rebounds for the Rebels.
Vanessa Espinoza led the Rams with a career-high 22 points and
was named co-MWC athlete of the week.
UP NEXT:
The Rebels will return to Las Vegas to face New Mexico on
Thursday night and CSU will play its final home game Friday night
against Wyoming.
No. 5 Wyoming vs. No. 7 San Diego State
The Cowgirls (5-6, 9-15) dominated the Aztecs with a 71-46
performance Saturday afternoon in Laramie, Wyo. SDSU didn’t break
into double-digits until the 5:52 mark in the first half. Despite
the 39-22 deficit the Aztecs charged from the locker room with a
10-6 run. But the Cowgirls kept their composure and won big.
“We’ve had a tough stretch here recently because it’s a battle
every night,” said Wyoming head coach Joe Legerski in a postgame
press conference.
Ashley Elliot finished the game with 28 points, and Brenda
Pickup, in her final home game had 15 points, all in the second
half. Candace Mattson led SDSU with a career-high 14 points and six
rebounds off the bench.
UP NEXT:
The Cowgirls will go on the road to face the Rams on Friday at
7:00 p.m., and San Diego State will head home to play Air Force at
7 p.m. on Thursday.
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