Wyoming guard sets Mountain West Tournament record as Cowgirls end Boise State’s streak
This was not the time for the not-so-good version of the Boise State women’s basketball team to show up.
Or was the Wyoming defense just that good?
A day after scoring 78 points, the Broncos shot just 28% from the floor and fell 53-38 to Wyoming in the semifinals of the Mountain West Tournament on Tuesday at the Thomas & Mack Center. The loss ends Boise State’s record 13-game tournament winning streak dating back to the 2017 season.
“I thought Wyoming played really hard, really physical, really scrappy and beat us to a lot of loose balls,” Boise State coach Gordy Presnell said. “They just really got after it, and we couldn’t ever establish anything offensively.”
Wyoming (13-9) advances to the tournament championship game for the second time in three seasons. The seventh-seeded Cowgirls will face No. 4 Fresno State (16-9) at 9 p.m. MT on Wednesday, and the game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network. And for the first time in five seasons, the winner will be someone other than Boise State.
“It’s hard. We had quite a streak going here,” Presnell said. “But that happens. Good things come to an end sometimes, and it’s time to start a new one.”
The Cowgirls forced 23 Boise State turnovers, led by junior guard Tommi Olson, who set a single-game tournament record with nine steals. The previous record was eight steals by UNLV’s Dakota Gonzalez, a graduate of Highland High in Pocatello. Wyoming’s 13 steals as a team tied a Mountain West semifinal record.
If not for Alexis Mark’s jumper before the halftime buzzer, Boise State would have tied the Mountain West Tournament record for fewest points in a half. As it was, the Broncos found themselves down 18-12 at the break, which tied for the second-fewest points in a half in tournament history. The Cowgirls and Broncos combined for 11 points in the first quarter, which goes down as the fewest combined points in a quarter in tournament history.
Boise State (14-9) missed its first seven shot attempts and was 2-for-21 from the floor (9.5%) with about 4 minutes until halftime. Mark then scored all eight of Boise State’s points over the final 3:59 of the second quarter.
“I think they were extremely physical, and I don’t mean that in any kind of negative way,” Presnell said of Wyoming. “I just think that they manhandled us, and we didn’t handle it and didn’t respond very well. We got kind of set on our heels by it.”
The Broncos’ shooting did not improve much in the second half (34.8%), and the Cowgirls scored 25 points in the third quarter and led by as many as 20 points, 45-25, at the start of the fourth quarter. Boise State finished 0-for-10 from beyond the arc and 14-for-50 from the floor. The Broncos’ 14 made field goals were just two more than what junior guard Jade Loville made by herself in Monday’s quarterfinal win over Colorado State.
“I think Wyoming really, really played to win,” Presnell said. “I don’t know, we may have played not to lose a little bit at the beginning. Even at halftime, we were down six and I thought: ‘We can get back into this thing.’ But we gave up a 25-point third quarter, and that was kind of all she wrote.”
Mark was the only Bronco to finish in double figures, notching 12 points, four rebounds and two steals. In the final game of her collegiate career, Boise State redshirt senior center Mallory McGwire pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds.
The Broncos blocked a combined eight shots in the loss, including three from freshman forward Abby Muse, increasing their season total to 149, which is a new program single-season record. The previous record was 146 blocked shots in 33 games by the 2014-15 squad.
“I think they’re super young. I think there’s so much room for growth. … Over the summer and up until next season, they’re just gonna get better and better,” McGwire said. “… I think the sky’s the limit. You just have to put the work in, and you know what this loss feels like now, so now you know what to fight for in March next year.”
Fresno State, which was picked to win the Mountain West in a preseason poll of the league’s coaches and select media, dominated Nevada 70-46 in the quarterfinals on Monday and then prevailed in a tight contest against top-seeded New Mexico, 77-72, on Tuesday.
The Cowgirls and Bulldogs split their regular-season series played in Laramie, Wyoming. The Cowgirls took the opener, 65-63, and the Bulldogs won the second game, 83-80.
“We have a good team, and we played well tonight. I just believe in us,” Fresno State coach Jaime White said. “I think, really, our biggest competitor is ourselves. If we will focus on what we do and doing it well and working together, game over.”
Reigning Mountain West Player of the Year Haley Cavinder led four Bulldogs in double figures with 22 points, seven rebounds, four assists, two steals and one blocked shot in Tuesday’s semifinal win over New Mexico. The sophomore guard became the fastest Fresno State player to reach 1,000 career points.
Wednesday’s title game will be a convergence of the conference’s stingiest defense (Wyoming) and its second-most prolific offense (Fresno State).
“I don’t know what the result of the game tomorrow will be, but what I know — because it’s happened all year — I know that these women will give everything that they have to do the best that they can,” Wyoming coach Gerald Mattinson said.
“They will play until they are completely and 100% exhausted. The win or the loss will take care of itself. I’m just proud of what they’ve done, and I know they will show up and represent who we are and who they are tomorrow.”
WYOMING 53, BOISE ST. 38
WYOMING (13-9)
Dagny Davidsdottir 7-10 1-2 15; Quinn Weidemann 4-11 0-0 10; Alba Sanchez Ramos 3-12 2-3 9; Grace Ellis 1-5 3-4 6; Tommi Olson 2-6 0-0 4; Ola Ustowska 1-2 0-0 3; McKinley Bradshaw 1-5 1-2 3; Jaye Johnson 1-2 0-0 3; Lexi Bull 0-0 0-0 0; Landri Hudson 0-0 0-0 0; Marta Savic 0-0 0-0 0; Paula Salazar 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 20-54 7-11 53.
BOISE ST. (14-9)
Alexis Mark 6-10 0-0 12; Jade Loville 3-11 2-2 8; Anna Ostlie 1-5 3-3 5; Abby Muse 2-5 0-1 4; Martina Machalova 1-2 1-1 3; Rachel Bowers 1-2 0-0 2; Mallory McGwire 0-6 2-2 2; Cristina Gil 0-1 2-2 2; Elodie Lalotte 0-1 0-0 0; Mary Kay Naro 0-6 0-0 0; Kimora Sykes 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 14-50 10-11 38.
Wyoming....................... 7 11 25 10 — 53
Boise St...................... 4 8 13 13 — 38
3-point goals — Wyoming 6-17 (Weidemann 2-3; Ellis 1-4; Sanchez Ramos 1-5; Ustowska 1-2; Johnson 1-2; Salazar 0-1), Boise St. 0-10 (Loville 0-1; Ostlie 0-4; McGwire 0-2; Gil 0-1; Naro 0-1; Sykes 0-1). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — Wyoming 36 (Johnson 6; Olson 6), Boise St. 37 (McGwire 11). Assists — Wyoming 12 (Olson 4), Boise St. 6 (McGwire 2). Total fouls — Wyoming 10, Boise St. 10. Technical fouls — None.
This story was originally published March 9, 2021 at 11:10 PM.
