Gonzaga University
19-5, 7-1WCC
Portland
13-10, 6-2WCC
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| PORTLAND PILOTS | 37 | 33 | 70 |
| GONZAGA BULLDOGS | 29 | 38 | 67 |
Women's Basketball Stunned By Portland; Falls 70-67
2/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 8, 2009
SPOKANE, Wash. - The curse of the eighth game of the West Coast Conference season continues to haunt the Gonzaga University women's basketball team as it dropped the first game of the second half of WCC play for the fourth-straight season with a 70-67 setback to the University of Portland in front of 3,012 Bulldog faithful at the McCarthey Athletic Center Sunday.
The loss broke a 16-game winning streak over the Pilots that dated back to 2001-02 campaign and also ended the Zags current eight-game winning streak. The Bulldogs are now 19-5 overall and 7-1 in conference. The Pilots, currently second in the WCC standings, improved their record to 13-10 overall and 6-2 in conference.
Gonzaga had a chance to tie the game at the end of regulation, but sophomore Janelle Bekkering's three-pointer at the buzzer was long.
"Portland wanted to win this game more than we did today," said head coach Kelly Graves after the contest. "We didn't play bad, we just got outworked."
The Bulldogs were led by sophomore Courtney Vandersloot who scored a team-high 19 points, dished out six assists, grabbed five rebounds and made one steal in 36 minutes of action.
Portland's Tara Cronin, a Spokane native who graduated from Gonzaga Prep, recorded a double-double and converted an old fashion three-point play late in the contest to help secure the Pilots stunning victory. Cronin scored 22 points and grabbed 13 boards; both game and career-highs.
"Tara [Cronin] played harder than anybody else on the floor today," stated Graves.
Portland led by eight at half, 37-29, and pushed its lead to 11, its largest advantage of the game, after Laiken Dollente drained a three-pointer to begin the second half. But Gonzaga, showing life for the first time all afternoon, responded with a 14-2 run over the next six minutes to take the lead. Junior Heather Bowman made good on a three-point play to give the Bulldogs a 43-42 lead at the 14:00 minute mark. It was the Zags first lead since it was 2-0.
The Pilots didn't fold after the Zags resurgence. Dollente hit three-straight field goals, including a three-pointer to give UP back a six point advantage at 49-43 with 11:20 remaining in the contest.
Gonzaga had another burst of energy and tied the game for the second time that half with a layup by Bowman at the 8:50 mark to put the score at 51-51.
Portland continued to hold at least a one point until a jumper by Bowman, followed by two free throws by Bowman and another two free throws by Vandersloot turned a GU four-point deficit to a two-point advantage at 67-65 at the 1:43 mark.
Gonzaga looked destined to increase its lead after Portland missed its next two scoring opportunities, but Vandersloot missed a jumper at the 1:20 mark and junior Vivian Frieson was off on her scoring attempt forty seconds later.
And that is when Cronin took over for Portland. She found an opening in the lane and scored a layup and was fouled by senior Jami Schaefer, playing in her first game since injury her knee Dec. 22, with 26 ticks left in the game. She hit her free throw to give the Pilots the 68-67 lead.
Gonzaga had two scoring opportunities as Bowman tried to hit a jumper with 19 seconds left but was blocked by Allyson Sievers. Schaefer grabbed the offensive board, dished it to Vandersloot, who put up a shot that again was blocked, this time by Cronin with nine seconds left. There was a scramble for the rebound and a jump ball was called; possession Portland.
On the inbounds play, Cronin got it and was immediately fouled. She sank both free throws to give the Pilots the three-point lead with seven seconds on the clock. Bekkering, who had an open look, missed the potential game-tying three-pointer.
Bowman finished with 18 points for Gonzaga, hitting 7-for-12 from the field and 4-of-7 at the charity stripe. Frieson chipped in 15 points, five rebounds, five steals, two assists and one block.
The Zags shot 40.0 percent (24-for-60) from the field, including 11.1 percent (1-for-9) from behind the three-point arc, and hit just 78.3 percent (18-of-23) at the free throw line.
The Pilots shot 50.0 percent (27-for-54) on the day and also hit 7-of-16 on three-pointers (43.8%) and was 9-for-11 (81.8%) at the charity strip.
Gonzaga turned 24 Portland turnovers into 21 points, while Portland only scored eight points off the Zags 11 mishandles. The Pilots, did however, dominate the boards, finishing with a huge 42-26 advantage.
The Bulldogs will look to rebound from their first loss in conference when it welcomes Saint Mary's College to the McCarthey Athletic Center Thursday, Feb. 12. Game time is set for 6 p.m.
