MIAMI -- The Washington State University women's basketball team exploded for a 23-point performance in the fourth quarter to help the Cougars collect a 69-54 victory over Southern University in the first game of the 2019 Miami Holiday Classic on Friday afternoon.
WSU entered the fourth quarter with a one-point lead over the Jaguars at 46-45, and began to get into a groove on both sides of the floor in the final frame. The Cougs opened fourth with a 10-1 run to build a 56-46 advantage with 5:46 to play and never looked back. Washington State's defense turned up the pressure in the fourth, as they did not allow a Southern field goal over the first seven minutes of the stanza, and only gave up nine points in the final quarter.
The win improves WSU to 7-4 on the year and guarantees the Cougs a winning record in the non-conference portion of their season.
Senior Borislava Hristova paced a trio of double-digit scorers for Washington State with a game-high 21 points. The Bulgarian native became just the second player in program history to collect over 1,900 points in their career, and she is now just 55 points away from breaking Jeanne Eggart's (1977-82) all-time scoring record of 1,967 points.
Fellow senior Chanelle Molina followed up Hristova's performance with a 15-point effort, while handing out eight assists for the second-straight contest. Junior Jovana Subasic also extended her double-digit scoring streak to four games with 10 points off the bench.
The Cougars battled all afternoon against a scrappy Southern University squad before pulling away in the fourth. Washington State doubled up the Jaguars at 18-9 after 10 minutes of play, but Southern was able to close the gap to one at the end of both the second and third quarters.
WSU concludes both the 2019 Miami Holiday Classic, and non-conference play, tomorrow morning – Dec. 21 – against the host Hurricanes. Tip-off against the University of Miami is set for 8 a.m. PT and will be streamed live on ACC Network Extra. Fans can also listen to Steve Grubbs call on the action locally on KQQQ 1150 AM.
COUG QUOTES
Head Coach Kamie Ethridge on the Win: "I thought we were lifeless in the first two quarters and we just didn't play to the (scouting report). There was no emotion or passion, so the challenge was to come back out in the second half and dedicate (which team) was going to control tempo. I'm really happy with how our team responded, and we clearly got a grip on what we should be doing in the fourth and pulled away at that point."
COUG NOTES
- Redshirt Borislava Hristova extended her double-digit scoring streak to five-straight games with a 21-point effort. Today's performance marks her 42nd career game with 20-or-more points.
- Today's victory gives head coach Kamie Ethridge her 99th career win as a head coach, just one win shy of the century mark.
- Washington State shot 52.8% as a team from the floor against Southern, marking the second-straight contests the Cougars have shot over 52% from the field.
- Sophomore Ula Motuga tied her career high in rebounds with eight against the Jaguars. It marks the second time over last four games that the forward has pulled down eight caroms.
- Sophomore Shir Levy scored a season-high eight points in today's victory.
- Freshman Emma Nankervis returned to action this afternoon after a three-game absence.
