City of Trees: Boise State women’s basketball finds early season success in the paint
There are some distinct advantages to having extensive depth at the post position.
But if you ask Boise State women’s basketball coach Gordy Presnell, there’s also one problem.
“I’ve gotta keep five of them happy,” Presnell said. “And there’s only 80 minutes (between two post positions) total with five of them, but I think we can grow in that area. ... We’re physical. We’ve never had a real block presence like that, so I’m excited about them.”
For the second consecutive game, the Broncos’ inside presence stood out, leading to an 84-58 nonconference victory over Weber State on Sunday afternoon at ExtraMile Arena. The Broncos scored 50 points in the paint against the Wildcats after scoring 66 in the paint in a win Friday over College of Idaho.
After missing Boise State’s season opener while in COVID-19 protocol, 6-foot-5 redshirt senior Mallory McGwire made her season debut against Weber State (0-3). McGwire posted a double-double of 11 points and 11 rebounds despite only playing 16 minutes because of foul trouble.
McGwire is one of seven Broncos who stand 6-foot or taller. It’s a significant change from the last few seasons when the Broncos have been particularly deep at guard.
“I thought the post group, as a whole, in terms of depth and everything is as good a group potentially as we’ve had,” Presnell said.
The Broncos (2-0) out-rebounded the Wildcats 55-36. Redshirt freshman Chinma Njoku, a Century High graduate, matched McGwire with a game-leading 11 rebounds, seven of which came on the offensive glass, to go with seven points. Six Broncos pulled down five rebounds or more in the win.
Junior Jade Loville led the Broncos in scoring for the second consecutive game. Loville totaled 16 points, two assists and two rebounds in 31 minutes. Fellow junior Rachel Bowers had 10 points and six rebounds. True freshman Alexis Mark, who has started the Broncos’ first two games, notched 13 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals.
“I was really nervous the first game, but I turned those nerves into energy,” said Mark, a 6-0 forward from Chatsworth, California. “The first couple minutes were a little hard to play through, but once I started getting going, I just adjusted quickly and I knew that I couldn’t let the nerves get the best of me, especially with a lot of responsibility as a freshman.”
Mary Kay Naro joined Mark as the other true freshman to start the first two games of the season for the Broncos. The point guard chipped in nine points, six assists, two steals and one block. She’s shown a knack for getting to the basket, but is still working on finishing once she gets there. Naro has gone a combined 6-for-20 from the floor in her first two games.
“San Diego State men and Houston men and some of those teams that are real physical and aggressive that have all that depth, if they miss a shot they go get it,” Presnell said. “We’re trying to have that kind of mentality. We’ve had such high percentage shooters around here, and we just spread people out and attack. It might not be that way for a while. If we miss it, we want to get it.”
Although fans were not permitted at Sunday’s game, it was still a homecoming of sorts for two Weber State players. Centennial High graduate Dominique Williams paced the Wildcats with 12 points, five rebounds and one assist, and Melba High grad Tori Pentzer contributed seven points, three rebounds and two steals.
The Broncos continue nonconference play Thursday against Eastern Washington. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. at ExtraMile Arena, and the game will be streamed online by the Mountain West Network.
NOTES: True freshmen guards Anna Ostlie and Raigan Reed have yet to make their collegiate debuts for the Broncos. Ostlie is still recovering from a knee injury she suffered in high school, while Reed is in COVID-19 protocol. ... The Broncos added a home game against College of Idaho (2 p.m. Dec. 16) to replace a previously scheduled game against Eastern Oregon on Dec. 17 that was removed from the schedule.
BOISE ST. 84, WEBER ST. 58
WEBER ST. (0-3)
Dominique Williams 6-11 0-0 12; Emma Torbert 2-13 6-7 10; Shianne Johnson 2-5 4-4 8; Kori Pentzer 2-3 2-2 7; Jadyn Matthews 2-10 1-2 6; Aloma Solovi 2-5 0-2 5; Daryn Hickok 1-2 2-2 4; Mikayla Peterson 0-3 4-4 4; Ula Chamberlin 1-6 0-0 2; Ashley Thoms 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 18-61 19-23 58.
BOISE ST. (2-0)
Jade Loville 7-18 1-1 16; Alexis Mark 6-12 1-2 13; Mallory McGwire 5-8 0-0 11; Rachel Bowers 4-7 1-3 10; Mary Kay Naro 4-12 0-2 9; Chinma Njoku 3-5 1-4 7; Kimora Sykes 2-4 0-0 6; Elodie Lalotte 3-7 0-0 6; Abby Muse 2-5 2-2 6; Martina Machalova 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 36-79 6-14 84.
Weber St...................... 16 8 22 12 — 58
Boise St...................... 18 22 24 20 — 84
3-point goals — Weber St. 3-13 (Jadyn Matthews 1-2; Aloma Solovi 1-1; Kori Pentzer 1-2; Daryn Hickok 0-1; Ula Chamberlin 0-1; Ashley Thoms 0-1; Shianne Johnson 0-1; Emma Torbert 0-3; Dominique Williams 0-1), Boise St. 6-14 (Kimora Sykes 2-3; Mallory McGwire 1-2; Rachel Bowers 1-2; Jade Loville 1-4; Mary Kay Naro 1-3). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — Weber St. 36 (Emma Torbert 8), Boise St. 55 (Chinma Njoku 11; Mallory McGwire 11). Assists — Weber St. 8 (Aloma Solovi 2; Daryn Hickok 2; Shianne Johnson 2), Boise St. 14 (Mary Kay Naro 6). Total fouls — Weber St. 14, Boise St. 21. Technical fouls — None.
This story was originally published December 6, 2020 at 4:54 PM.
