HOUSTON – The Washington State women's basketball team concluded its three games in five days stretch a perfect 3-0, as the Cougars picked up a 70-63 victory at Houston on Wednesday, Dec. 21.
WSU got a double-digit performance from four Cougs, led by fifth-year senior Ula Motuga who turned in a 14-point effort. Motuga was perfect on the day, as she hit all six of her shot attempts from the floor and went a perfect 2-for-2 at the free throw line.
A trio of Cougs scored 11 points, as senior Johanna Teder, junior Charlisse Leger-Walker, and sophomore Tara Wallack joined Motuga in the double-digit scoring column. Seniors Bella Murekatete and Grace Sarver each had eight points. Freshman Astera Tuhina rounded out a balanced scoring performance from Washington State with a seven-point effort. Murekatete nearly had her fifth double-double of the season, as she pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.
With the win, Washington State concludes the non-conference portion of its schedule at 10-1. The Cougars are now off to a 10-2 start to open the 2022-23 season, which ties them with the 2014-15 and 1989-90 teams for the best start in program history in the NCAA era.
The Cougars had to overcome a slow start against Houston, was UH held a 19-12 lead after scoring the opening bucket of the second quarter. It was all Washington State from that point, as WSU would turn up the defensive pressure and only allowed Houston to score only two more points in the second stanza. The Cougars would use a 16-2 run to close out the quarter and take a 28-21 lead at the break. The run was sparked by Sarver, who scored eight points during the run.
Washington State recorded the first seven points out of halftime to extend its run to 23-2 to give the Cougars a double-digit lead at 35-21. Houston did not back down, as the Cougars from Houston went on an 8-0 run to cut Washington State's lead back to seven points, 46-39, heading into the fourth quarter.
WSU had to fend off a hot-shooting Houston team in the fourth quarter, as Houston got three-consecutive 3-point field goals to make it a one-possession game at 52-49 with 7:00 left to play. Senior Johanna Teder hit a clutch 3-point field goal on the next possession to extend WSU's lead 55-49. The Cougars kept Houston at bay for the remainder of the frame, as Washington State walked out of the Fertitta Center with a 70-63 win.
Washington State shot 45.1 percent from the field in the win, while limiting Houston to 37.5 percent from the floor. The Cougars crashed the glass hard against Houston, as WSU outrebounded UH 36-29, which led to a 38-16 advantage in second-chance points.
Coach Ethridge on the Win
"We're happy to walk out of here with a win. Houston is a very scary team to face. If you're not use to that kind of defensive pressure then it makes you make mistakes. I'm happy we had so many players step up today. I wanted to have a lot of ball handlers on the floor and felt like we got into a decent rhythm. We answered the call, which is exciting to see from this team. Every time Houston made a run we answered back and never let them take the lead."
Coug Notes
- Washington State picks up its third win in a little over 96 hours, as the Cougars close out their three-game, five-day stretch a perfect 3-0.
- Washington State moves to 2-0 all-time vs. Houston.
- The Cougars have now won three-straight games to improve to 10-2 on the year.
- Charlisse Leger-Walker moves into a tie with April Cook for 13th on WSU's all-time scoring list with 1,188 career points.
- It is Charlisse Leger-Walker's 58th career game in double-digits.
- Charlisse Leger-Walker extends her double-digit scoring streak
- Ula Motuga led the Cougs in scoring for the fifth time in her WSU career, while she records her fourth double-digit scoring performance of the season.
- Grace Sarver scored a season-high eight points in the win.
- Johanna Teder records double-digit points for the 25th time in her WSU career and for the seventh time this season.
Up Next
Washington State will take an extended break over the Holidays, as the Cougars will not be back in action until Dec. 30, when they host Utah for the first home Pac-12 Conference game of the season. Tip-off against the Utes is set for 4 p.m. PT and will air live on the Pac-12 Network.
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