TEMPE, Ariz. (February 18, 2024) – Washington State women's basketball never trailed ASU Sunday afternoon, and used a monstrous fourth quarter to bury the Sun Devils, 73-46, Sunday afternoon.
The Cougars (16-11, 5-9 Pac-12) outscored ASU 27-7 in the final period, and hauled in 47 rebounds while sinking 10-of-21 from beyond the arc as a team.
The defense held ASU to just 30 percent from the field (19-of-64) and nine percent from deep (1-of-11).
Tara Wallack scored a career-high 23 points to go with four rebounds, three assists and a block.
Eleonora Villa finished with 17 points and a career-high five boards along with her four assists and two steals. This was E. Villa's 11th straight game in double-digit scoring and 22nd of the season.
Beyonce Bea recorded her second double-double of the year with 11 points and a season-best 13 rebounds. She also added two assists, a block and a steal.
Bella Murekatete led the way on defense with 12 boards, three blocks and three steals, on top of four points and three assists.
Astera Tuhina tallied eight points, four rebounds, five assists, a block and a steal.
Alex Covill grabbed three rebounds and blocked two shots.
Jenna Villa finished with eight points, while
Kyra Gardner put up her third block of the season.
After five early points from Wallack, threes from J. Villa and E. Villa put the Cougs ahead 11-2 midway through the first. Layups from Murekatete and Bea as time ticked down in the first quarter helped WSU to a 16-8 lead going into the second.
ASU quickly drew back to within four, and a Wallack three and Tuhina jumper kept WSU ahead 21-16. The Sun Devils would come back to even things at 21-all with two minutes to play before halftime, but five straight points from E. Villa to close the second quarter sent the Cougs into the locker room with a 26-21 advantage.
Out of the break, buckets from Bea and another Wallack triple quickly stalled a 4-0 ASU spurt to keep WSU ahead, 33-28. ASU tied the game up for a second time, 33-33, but WSU answered with a 6-0 run highlighted by a Tuhina three, making it 39-33 with under five to go in the third.
Back-and-forth play continued throughout the rest of the quarter before a Bea jumper and Wallack's third three sent the game into the fourth quarter, 46-39, in favor of the Cougs.
WSU kept shooting in the fourth as an E. Villa trey stretched the lead to 49-41. Minutes later, a Tuhina three-pointer made it a 10-point game before a Wallack layup made it 55-43 with six minutes to play.
The Cougar offense lit it up the rest of the way, as layups from both Villa's and a three from J. Villa added some sparks amidst an 11-of-13 showing from the charity stripe down the stretch, helping WSU to outscore ASU 23-3 down the stretch and win 73-46.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
Bella Murekatete
- Grabbed 12 rebounds to extend her program lead to 929 career rebounds
- Four points today puts her at 1,469 career points, 10th most in program history
- Three blocks extended her program lead in career blocks to 182
- Played in game number 144, and started her 136th game, extending her program lead in both categories
Beyonce Bea
- Her 11 points tonight extended her career total to 2,081 points
- Grabbed 13 rebounds to extend career rebounds total to 1,026
- Appeared in her 138th career game
NOTES
- E. Villa has scored in double-figures 22 times this season, putting her tied for fifth with Charlisse Leger-Walker for most double-digit scoring games by a WSU freshman.
- E. Villa's 11 straight double-digit games puts her fifth all-time for consecutive double-digit scoring games for a freshman in WSU history.
UP NEXT
The Cougars are back home for the final time in the 2023-24 season to host Oregon State on Friday, Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. on Fan Appreciation Night, where the first 1,400 fans will receive a
Charlisse Leger-Walker bobblehead. Then the Cougs will play host to Oregon on Sunday, Feb. 25 at 12 p.m. on Senior Day.
FOLLOW US
For more information on the Washington State women's basketball team, follow @WSUCougarWBB on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
