‘Totally on me.’ Presnell takes blame for Boise State’s final play against Fresno State
Gordy Presnell is the winningest coach in Boise State women’s basketball history, but sometimes, even legends make mistakes.
“I thought we needed a two,” Presnell told Chris Lewis in a postgame radio interview on 1350 AM. “I didn’t even look at the score.”
The Broncos trailed Fresno State by three points with 12.2 seconds left, and Presnell drew up a play during a timeout to get leading scorer Jade Loville a shot in the key. Loville’s jumper missed and freshman Abby Muse grabbed the rebound, but time ran out before the Broncos could attempt a potential game-tying 3-pointer.
Fresno State walked off the court Saturday afternoon with a 67-64 victory and a sweep of the Broncos in their two-game Mountain West series at Save Mart Center in Fresno, California.
Presnell, who is one victory away from his 700th career win, couldn’t disguise his disappointment.
“It was just a tough way to end it. We still had a look at a three at the end, but that is just totally on me,” Presnell said. “I don’t know that we’d of hit it or not, but I sure would have liked to have given ourselves a better chance.
“... We’ve got to learn from this. I’ve got to learn from this. That’s the first time I’ve done that in 34 years. It’s disappointing.”
Less than 48 hours after absorbing a 35-point loss against the Bulldogs, the Broncos (8-3, 5-3 MW) came back with an effective game plan for Round 2. Boise State led 47-46 with 2:23 remaining in the third quarter and forced ties at 48, 58, 60 and 62.
Boise State senior Mallory McGwire was limited to a single free throw in Thursday’s 92-57 loss, but she recovered for a career-high 26 points and nine rebounds on Saturday. The 6-foot-5 McGwire scored 12 of Boise State’s 16 points in the fourth quarter, and her baseline jumper with 2:20 on the clock knotted the game at 62-all.
Fresno State answered with four straight points — highlighted by sophomore guard Haley Cavinder’s triple with 29.9 seconds to go — to retake the lead for the final time. Cavinder is currently the Mountain West’s leading scorer, and she finished with 18 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Reigning Mountain West Player of the Year Maddi Utti went 9-for-12 shooting for 20 points to pace the Bulldogs (8-5, 6-2).
Loville (12 points) and Muse (11 points) matched McGwire in double figures. The Broncos played Saturday’s game without starting junior forward Rachel Bowers and reserve freshman guard Cristina Gil. Both women made the trip to Fresno and played in Thursday’s game. Boise State did not provide a reason why Bowers and Gil were not suited up for Game 2.
The Broncos resume conference play next week in Boise against Colorado State. The games are scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday and 1 p.m. Friday at ExtraMile Arena. A live stream of both games is available at BroncoSports.com/mwn, or listen on the radio on 1350 AM.
The Rams have two former Idaho high school standouts on their roster in redshirt juniors Tori Williams and Lauren Brocke. The pair led Centennial High to a 5A state championship in 2017.
FRESNO STATE 67, BOISE STATE 64
BOISE STATE (8-3, 5-3 MW)
Mallory McGwire 12-20 1-2 26; Jade Loville 5-18 2-2 12; Abby Muse 5-8 1-3 11; Anna Ostlie 2-6 0-0 6; Alexis Mark 1-6 3-4 5; Elodie Lalotte 1-4 0-0 2; Kimora Sykes 1-1 0-0 2; Raigan Reed 0-1 0-0 0; Mary Kay Naro 0-6 0-0 0. Totals 27-70 7-11 64.
FRESNO STATE (8-5, 6-2 MW)
Maddi Utti 9-12 2-4 20; Haley Cavinder 7-15 1-2 18; Hanna Cavinder 3-11 3-4 9; Aly Gamez 3-4 1-1 7; Wytalla Motta 3-9 0-0 6; Kendyll Kinzer 1-2 0-0 3; Bree Delaney 1-3 0-0 3; Keely Brown 0-0 1-2 1; Maria Guimaraes 0-1 0-0 0; Brooke Walling 0-0 0-0 0; Genna Ogier 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 27-59 8-13 67.
Boise State................... 19 15 14 16 — 64
Fresno State.................. 18 16 19 14 — 67
3-point goals — Boise State 3-16 (Ostlie 2-6; McGwire 1-5; Reed 0-1; Naro 0-2; Loville 0-2), Fresno State 5-17 (Haley Cavinder 3-7; Kinzer 1-2; Delaney 1-3; Motta 0-1; Ogier 0-1; Gamez 0-1; Hanna Cavinder 0-1; Utti 0-1). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — Boise State 39 (McGwire 9), Fresno State 38 (Haley Cavinder 8). Assists — Boise State 11 (Loville 3; Muse 3; McGwire 3), Fresno State 11 (Haley Cavinder 5). Total fouls — Boise State 14, Fresno State 11. Technical fouls — Boise State-Loville, Fresno State-Gamez.
This story was originally published January 23, 2021 at 6:15 PM.
