LAS VEGAS, Nev. (March 9, 2025) – Washington State women's basketball came out firing in the second half to lift themselves over Pacific 73-62 and advance to tomorrow's WCC semifinals.

The Cougars (20-12) went 6-of-15 from beyond the arc for a 40-percent clip on the day, and shot 45.9 percent from the field while outscoring Pacific 38-25 in the second half. The team also made their shots at the free throw line, going 11-of-12.

With the win, Washington State has reached 20 wins on the season, eclipsing the 20-win mark for the third-consecutive season.

Astera Tuhina led the offense with 18 points to go with six assists, four rebounds and a steal.

Dayana Mendes chipped in 15 points, four boards and two steals, while Kyra Gardner added 10 points, a block and five rebounds.

Alex Covill tallied eight points, seven rebounds and two blocks in her first game back since January 27.

Tara Wallack finished with eight points, five rebounds, two steals and four assists, and Eleonora Villa had seven points and three steals.

Taking advantage of an early technical foul by Pacific, the Cougars rattled off an 8-2 run behind a Tuhina layup and a Jenna Villa three to take an 8-4 lead. Pacific answered with a pair of threes, though, to put them back ahead 10-8 before back-and-forth play started. Despite Cougar buckets from Covill, Wallack and Charlotte Abraham to keep pace with the Tigers, Anaya James' 14 first-quarter points helped Pacific hold a 20-18 lead at the end of the first.

WSU took the lead back in the second as Gardner knocked down a three, and then a pair of Covill layups made it 27-23 midway through the second. With 3:28 to play in the first half, Tuhina hit a three to stretch the lead to six, 32-26, but Pacific scored 11 unanswered to retake a lead as Wazzu trailed 37-35 at the intermission.

Wallack evened things up coming out of the locker room before Mendes put WSU back on top 43-41 with a layup. Eleonora Villa checked in with her first points of game with 3-point play, and then another Wallack layup capped a 7-0 run to stretch the lead to 48-41.

After a couple of quick Pacific layups, Gardner connected for three to halt their momentum and put the Cougar lead at 51-45. WSU went on to outscore the Tigers 20-10 in the third quarter, extending the lead to 55-47 on a Gardner layup as the game entered its final quarter. 

Gardner kept shooting in the fourth, giving Wazzu its first 10-point lead with a jumper, 57-47. Pacific wasn't done, drawing back to with five, 57-52. But WSU answered again, this time with a Tuhina three, putting the lead back out to 60-52. Tuhina added on as the game entered its final four minutes with a big 3-point play to make it 65-54, and Mendes and Eleonora Villa locked things down with some clutch buckets down the stretch, sealing the 73-62 victory.

RECORD BOOK CLIMBERS AND MILESTONE CHASERS  

• Tara Wallack's eight points puts her at 1,267 for her career, 14th in program history.
• Wallack has 159 career blocks, second all-time at WSU.
• Wallack had five rebounds, putting her at 658 career boards, ninth all time at WSU.
• With 36 minutes today, Wallack has played 3,907 career minutes, moving up to second all-time at WSU.
• Wallack is also 53 minutes away from matching the most in program history.
• With the team's six made 3-pointers today, WSU has made 230 threes this season, breaking the program record of 225 set in 2023-24.
• Coach Ethridge has 198 career wins as a head coach, two from 200.

NOTES

• Washington State has now beaten Pacific three times this season, and has won each of their last five meetings dating back to Pacific's last win over the Cougars in 1983.

UP NEXT  
With the win, the No. 3 seed Cougars advance to the 2025 Credit Union 1 WCC Championship semifinals to take on No. 2 seed Portland Monday, March 10 at 2:30 p.m.

FOLLOW US  
For more information on the Washington State women's basketball team, follow @WSUCougarWBB on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.