Borislava Hristova with a pullup jumper against Gonzaga
53
Washington State WSU 4-5
76
Winner Gonzaga GON 9-1
Washington State WSU
4-5
53
Final
76
Gonzaga GON
9-1
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Washington State WSU 13 11 10 19 53
Gonzaga GON 12 22 20 22 76

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Athletic Communications

Cougars Fall Short at No. 24/22 Gonzaga

The Cougs started strong but could not match the Zags balanced attack.

In Case You Missed It ...
SPOKANE, Wash. - Playing its final game before finals, Washington State (4-5) could not keep its winning ways going on the road at #24/22 Gonzaga (9-1) as the Bulldogs prevailed, 76-53, Sunday afternoon in Spokane. Despite holding the Zags to just over 20% shooting in the opening frame, the Cougars could not turn a stellar defensive effort into anything more than a one point lead after one as the Bulldogs controlled the offensive glass and with it the scoreboard. With the game evening out in the second quarter, the Zags were able to press their advantage, finishing the half on a 9-0 run that turned a one-point advantage into a double-digit lead at the break. With the shots not falling and the Zags continuing to take advantage of WSU mistakes, the Bulldogs bookended the third quarter with a pair of big runs that seemingly put the game out of reach with still one quarter to play. Despite hitting a handful of shots from the outside the Cougs could not close the gap on the Bulldogs who matched every basket by WSU with one of their own. In the end, the Zags put together a balanced effort with five in double-figures that overwhelmed the Cougs defensively over the final three quarters of play.

Coach Ethridge Quote of the Game
"We moved the ball pretty well early and they just got more physical with us and we just don't like being kind of whipped around. You saw a team that played a lot harder than the other team, from the opening tip to the very end. We obviously got very discouraged in the fourth quarter and gave up some things. You look at their players. They came in with an unbelievable amount of energy, they rebounded the basketball, and they exposed anytime we didn't play hard. We just got outworked tonight."

Moments of the Game Things You Need To Know
  • WSU saw its three-game winning streak come to an end as the Zags won their third-straight and improved to 20-10 all-time against the Cougars.
  • Borislava Hristova scored a game-high 19 points, scoring in double-figures in all nine of the Cougars' games to start the year. She moved into ninth place all-time on WSU's scoring list with 1,298 points passing Jazmine Perkins (2008-12).
  • Before sitting the majority of the second half with foul trouble, senior center Maria Kostourkova posted 10 points and seven rebounds while shooting 5-of-6 from the floor.
  • Five Bulldogs reached double-figures in the game led by Jill Townsend with 13 points off the bench. LeeAnne Wirth finshed with 12 while Katie Campbell added 11. Both Zykera Rice and Laura Stockton posted 10 points.
  • Gonzaga ended the game shooting 52.5% (32-of-61) from the floor. In the final three quarters the Bulldogs hit 27-of-40 from the field.
  • The Cougars shot 40.0% (20-of-50) from the floor but finished 15-of-40 over the final three quarters of play.
  • Gonzaga finished the game with a 36-to-25 rebound advantage including 15 offensive rebounds, 10 of which came in the first quarter, to post 15 second chance points and a 38-to-28 advantage in points in the paint.
  • The Cougars will take a 10-day break for finals and the end of the semester before heading to Las Vegas for the Duel In The Desert Dec. 19-20. WSU will take on Kansas, Dec. 19, to start the tournament with a second game to follow Dec. 20 with the opponent to be determined.
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