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LOS ANGELES –  A blazing start and strong shooting was not enough for Washington State (7-15, 2-9) to overcome some key mistakes late as USC (13-8, 3-7) rallied to defeat the Cougars, 81-73, Sunday afternoon at the Galen Center. Just as she did two days prior, junior
Chanelle Molina put together a shooting clinic in the opening quarter as the junior scored 12 points on four three-pointers to push the Cougs to a 30-24 lead after one. The 30 points in the opening frame tied a program record for scoring in the first quarter, a mark set earlier in the year against Boise State. However, the hot shooting would not hold for WSU as the Cougs struggled to score in the second quarter leading to an 11-0 run by the Trojans over the first six minutes of action. Despite not hitting their first field goal until the 1:28 mark in the quarter, the Cougars would finish the half on an 8-2 run, including back-to-back threes by
Ula Motuga and
Alexys Swedlund, capturing the lead before the halftime break. Up one, the Cougars would push their lead to as much as eight midway through the new quarter as
Borislava Hristova took over the game on the offensive end of the floor. The star junior would go off for 14 of her 24 points in the 10-minute run, only to watch the Trojans overcome her efforts with a push to the basket. Back-to-back and-one opportunities for USC's Minyon Moore kick started a Trojan rally that proved to be the difference in the game as USC closed the quarter on a 17-4 run that gave USC the lead for good heading into the final quarter. While the Cougars would close the gap to just four late in the game, the Trojans would finish out the contest at the line to end any hopes of a comeback by WSU.
Coach Ethridge Quote of the Game
"I am really proud of the team and how they played. I am playing the snot out of a couple of players who are having to play so many minutes and its just really ahrd to be that on edge and that good and to carry us like they did. I thought we bounced back and really competed hard. We just didn't guard them well enough in the second half and they just got to main line drives. We've been really good at guarding the weaves, and blurs, and all those kinds of defenses and catching them, making people make hard twos, but we let them turn the corner and get some and-ones. We couldn't answer quite enough offensively to keep up with them in the second half. So, it's discouraging that we didn't hold them a little bit better and give us a chance to win. On the offensive end we got some great looks and I don't know if it is fatigue or just some misses that really hurt us to keep it tight and give us a chance at the end."
Moments of the Game
Things You Need To Know
- WSU fell for the sixth-straight Pac-12 game as the Trojans won the fourth-straight matchup with the Cougars.
- Borislava Hristova notched her second-straight double-double to lead the Cougars with 24 points and 10 rebounds. It was her fifth double-double of the season and third-straight game with double-digit rebounds. In addition, Hristova tied a career high with five assists.
- In the second quarter, Hristova notched a pair of free throws the pushed the super star scorer took over sole possession of third on the Cougars' all-time scoring list, passing all-time great Tia Presley (2011-15). Hristova finished the day with 1,559 points taking aim at No. 2 Lia Galderia's (2012-15) mark of 1,710.
- The Cougs saw two others reach double figures in the scoring with Alexys Swedlund (18) and Chanelle Molina (17) scoring the bulk of their points from deep. Molina finished the game 5-for-7 from distance after going 6-for-7 from deep at UCLA a game prior. Molina notched her 13th-consecutive double-digit scoring game with her performance.
- The Trojans finished the game with four in double figures led by Aliyah Mazyck's season-high 27 points on 11-of-18 shooting. Minyon Moore shipped in 21 including hitting 5-of-6 from the line while Kayla Overbeck (12) and Asiah Jones (10) rounded out USC's scoring.
- The Cougs fell for the first time on the year when 50% or better from the floor as USC outshot WSU 52.3%-to-50.9%. In addition the Cougs hit the mark that has meant victory throughout the year from deep, knocking down 11-of-27 from deep, but gave up a 58-24 advantage in the paint and a 24-12 advantage off of turnovers to the Trojans.
- WSU will head home to face No. 21 Arizona State Thursday, Feb. 7. The two will meet at Beasley Coliseum at 7 p.m.
