LOS ANGELES – For the first time in program history the Washington State women's basketball team collected a win inside Pauley Pavilion, as the Cougars knocked off No. 17/16 UCLA, 62-55, to kick off the final week of the 2022-23 regular season.

It is Washington State's first road win ever against the Bruins, as WSU picks up a win at historically Pauley Pavilion for the first time in 35 attempts. Washington State had three players score double-digit points in the remarkable victory, as senior Bella Murekatete and sophomore Tara Wallack tied for a team-high 15 points, while junior Charlisse Leger-Walker chipped in 12 points against the Bruins.

With the win, Washington State improves to 19-9 overall on the year, while the Cougars move a game over .500 in Pac-12 Conference play, as WSU is now 9-8 in league games. The 19 wins tie this year's team with the 2021-22 squad for the most victories in a single season in the NCAA era (post-1982). This year's group of Cougs are now two wins away from matching the program record for most victories in a single season of 21 wins, which was set by the 1978-79 team.

The victory also gives WSU three road wins over a ranked opponent this season, as the Cougars have now collected wins at No. 21/18 Oregon, at No. 17/14 Arizona, and now No. 17/16 UCLA. It marks the first time in program history that the Cougars have won three games on the road against ranked teams. Meanwhile, the three wins collected against ranked teams this season for Washington State are the third-most wins against a ranked team in the Pac-12.

The defense came to play on the road for the Cougars, as Washington State held UCLA to just 29.0 percent from the field. Washington State forced the Bruins into 12 turnovers, which led to a 14-10 edge in points off turnovers. The Cougars also outrebounded one of the top rebounding teams in the nation, as the Cougs held a 42-39 edge in rebounds.

The Cougars pounced on the Bruins early, as Washington State jumped out to a 13-4 lead at the 1:55 mark of the first quarter. Washington State built a game-high 10-point lead after an old-fashioned 3-point play from fifth year senior Ula Motgua gave WSU a 21-11 advantage midway through the second stanza. UCLA responded with a 10-0 run to pull even with the Cougs at 21-all. The two teams would remain tied for the remainder of the second quarter, as the two teams went into the break knotted up at 25-25.

The No. 17/16-ranked Bruins scored the first four points out of the break, but Washington State responded with a 12-0 run of its own to reclaim a 37-29 lead after a Wallack 3-pointer. Wallack was huge in the 12-0 run for the Cougars, as the South Surrey, Canada native scored eight of the 12 points during the spurt.

Washington State took a 45-40 lead into the fourth quarter and opened the final frame on a 6-2 run to take a 51-42 lead after a Motuga layup in transition. The Bruins pulled to within a bucket at 56-53 with 1:33 remaining, but Wallack's 3-point field goal with 24 seconds left gave the Cougars a 59-53 lead. WSU would convert at the free throw line to keep distance from the Bruins, as Washington State walked out of Pauley Pavilion with a win for the first time in program history.

Coach Ethridge on the Win
"Obviously I'm thrilled, and what can you say about this bunch? They keep impressing and doing things that haven't been done here before. I thought the team responded in a great way. The last time we were in a tight game on the road we didn't finish well. I think we did today in the fourth quarter, had big plays from a multitude of different people. Had chances to get it away, but we didn't, and Tara hits a three that was a game-sealer. It was so neat to see Tara knock down a shot like that."

Up Next
Washington State now travels across Los Angeles to Southern California for the 2022-23 regular season finale this Saturday, Feb. 25. Tip-off against the Trojans is set for 12 p.m. PT and will air live on Pac-12 Network Washington.

Coug Notes
- Washington State improves to 19-9 overall this season. The 19 wins tie the Cougars with the 2021-22 squad for the most wins in a single season in the NCAA era (post-1982).
- The 19 wins are tied for the second-most wins in a single season in WSU history, matching the win total of the 1977-78 and 2021-22 teams.
- The Cougars need two more wins to match the program record of 21 wins set by the 1978-79 squad.
- WSU picks up its ninth Pac-12 win of the season. It is the third-straight season that the Cougars have won at least nine Pac-12 games, which marks the first time in program history that Washington State has won nine or more league games in three-straight seasons.
- The Cougars collect their ninth win on the road this season, which is the most road wins in a single season for Washington State since the 2014-15 team picked up 10 victories on the road.
- Bella Murekatete picked up her seventh career double-double with a 15-point, 10-rebound effort at UCLA. It ties Murekatete with four other Cougars for the eighth most double-doubles collected in a single season in program history.
- Fifth year senior Ula Motuga tied Sage Romberg (2010-14) for the program's all-time games played record, as Motuga suited up for the Cougars for the 128th game tonight at UCLA. Motuga will set the record in her next game.
- Charlisse Leger-Walker passed Chanelle Molina (2016-20) for ninth on WSU's all-time scoring list. Leger-Walker now has 1,367 career points.
- Leger-Walker scored double-digit points for the 68th time in her 78 career games with the Cougs.
- Tara Wallack scored double-digit points for the 15th time this season with her 15-point performance at UCLA.

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