The young Weber State women's basketball team is beginning to come together.
That's scary news for the Montana Lady Griz, who play host to the Wildcats on Thursday at Dahlberg Arena.
Portland State led 50-48 with 11 minutes left when the Wildcats went on an 11-0 run. The rest of the game was back-and-forth, with the Wildcats taking a two-point lead with 1:19 remaining.
Claire Faucher hit a three-pointer with 51 seconds remaining to give the Vikings a three-point lead with 28 seconds left. That's when WSU senior Ahkiah Hunter drove the hoop and pulled off a three-point play that tied the game at 68. PSU missed a final attempt and the game went to overtime.
In the extra period the Wildcats scored first and never trailed. They were 3-for-7 from the field in OT, while the Vikings shot just 1-for-8.
“Our whole game plan was to try and stop Faucher,” Hunter told the Ogden Standard-Examiner. “She's the key to what they try to do. When we play aggressive we make things happen, and that makes us more confident.”
Tuomi posted her fifth double-double this season. The Billings native finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds, with all 16 points coming after halftime.
She was 5-for-11 from the field and 5-for-7 from the free-throw line, but she did snap a streak of 45 straight free throws made. Tuomi has now scored in double figures in all 23 games this season.
“I was really pleased with the way our players played ... attacking (Portland State) on both ends of the court,” Wildcats coach Carla Taylor told the Standard-Examiner.
Weber State holds the sixth spot in the Big Sky standings. Only six teams advance to the league's tournament in March.
Faucher sets league record
Faucher recorded 19 assists to set the Big Sky single-game record as Portland State humbled Idaho State 81-63 on Thursday night in Pocatello, Idaho.
The sophomore point guard notched 13 of those assists in the first half alone.
Faucher is the nation's leader in assists per game with 8.76. Her 19-assists performance is also the best single-game mark in the NCAA this season.
She recorded 17 assists against Cal State Northridge and 16 assists against Portland in November. Those marks were previously ranked second and third in the national single-game statistics.
The previous Big Sky record of 18 single-game assists was set by Idaho's Netra McGrew on Feb. 21, 1986, against Montana State. Not only does Faucher hold the new record but she ranks third, fourth and fifth in that category.
She notched 16 assists against Sacramento State and 15 assists against Idaho State in 2006-07 to write her name in the conference record books as a freshman.
The native of Yakima, Wash. was named to the Nancy Lieberman “Players Making a Buzz” list earlier this season.
Bengals control destiny
The Idaho State Bengals, who can clinch the league regular-season title by winning out, shook off a slow start and beat Eastern Washington 73-62 at Reed Gym Saturday afternoon.
National Player of the Year candidate Natalie Doma led the charge with her league-leading 20th double-double, scoring 25 points and 15 rebounds. Tatjana Sparavalo led the Eagles off the bench with 24 points.
Idaho State struggled to find the basket early in the game missing their first nine shots. Eastern Washington jumped out to a 6-0 lead.
“They lulled us into their tempo in the first half,” ISU coach Jon Newlee said in a press release. “ ... I just knew it was going to be a struggle until we got going.”
In the second half, the Bengals took control. Doma scored 10 points in a 15-2 Idaho State run that gave the Bengals the lead for good. Doma also had a season-high four blocks and two steals.
After further review
Montana State's four game win streak ended in dramatic fashion Friday in Flagstaff, Ariz. The Bobcats almost pulled off one of the biggest comebacks in school history, but came up painfully short as Sade Cunningham converted a running 10-footer at the buzzer to give Northern Arizona a 71-70 victory.
Officials watched a replay of the shot on a television monitor to make sure she released the ball before the horn sounded. Ironically, Cunningham's play is not what the Jacks drew up in the huddle.
“We were trying to get the ball to halfcourt and shorten that four seconds into a halfcourt play,” NAU coach Laurie Kelly told the Arizona Daily Sun. “It turned out that Sade made a good decision.”
Northern Arizona built a 20-point cushion in the first half and held a 44-33 advantage at intermission.
Montana State (8-4 conference, 12-11 overall) shored up its first-half defensive woes and rattled off a 26-8 run to open the second stanza, staking a 59-53 lead with 9:18 remaining following an Erica Perry jumper.
NAU answered back with an 7-0 run to regain the lead at 60-59 with just over five minutes remaining on an Ashley Ingle field goal.
The lead changed hands three times before a Rebecca Mercer 3-pointer gave MSU a 68-65 advantage with 43 seconds left.
A Dinkins layup and a Janelle Matthews jumper with nine-seconds remaining gave Northern Arizona a 69-68 margin. Following a MSU timeout, Perry raced the length of the court unscathed for a layup with 4.2-seconds remaining, giving the Bobcats a 70-69 margin.
Cunningham then turned the tables and floated her runner over Perry and Krislyn Wallace as time expired.
“I had no idea what was going through my mind except run as fast as I can and try to get a shot off,” Cunningham told the Arizona Daily Sun.
Montana State coach Tricia Binford wasn't pleased with the Bobcats' defense.
“You can't get down 20-points and think you're going to win the game,” she said.
“However, give our kids credit. They picked up the defense and got themselves back into the game. I really liked how they battled in the second half. However, a few possessions down the stretch got away from us and we didn't finish like we wanted.”
Mercer paced the Bobcats with a team-high 19 points, while Nubia Garcia added 13, Jenny Heringer 11 and Wallace 10. Wallace finished with a double-double, pulling down a game-high 11 rebounds.
NOTES: Montana moved up to No. 93 in the latest RPI rankings. Idaho State is the next Big Sky team on the list at 113, and Portland State sits at 123 ... Doma is 58 points shy of breaking the Big Sky career scoring record of 2,115. That record is held by former Montana star Shannon (Cate) Schweyen. If Doma has a big game on Thursday at Montana State, she'll have a chance to break the record Thursday at Dahlberg Arena.
Sports writer Bill Speltz can be reached at 523-5255 or bill.speltz@lee.net.
3 in the key
Players of the week
Sara Tuomi, Weber State; Claire Faucher, Portland State. Tuomi, a Billings native, led the Wildcats to two home wins, including a 76-71 overtime upset of Portland State on Saturday. The 6-foot senior forward averaged 22 points, 10.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists on the week. Tuomi posted a career-high 28 points and grabbed eight rebounds against Eastern Washington on Thursday. Faucher, a 5-9 sophomore point guard, recorded 19 assists to set the Big Sky single-game record as her team defeated Idaho State 81-63 on Thursday night. She notched 13 of those assists in the first half alone. Faucher's 19-assists performance is the best in the nation this season. A native of Yakima, Wash., she also averaged 13.5 points and 6.5 boards last week.
Quote of the week
‘I had no idea what was going through my mind except run as fast as I can and try to get a shot off.'
Sade Cunningham, Northern Arizona guard, following her buzzer-beater shot Friday
that ended Montana State's
four-game win streak.
Game to watch
Idaho State at Montana, Saturday: The Big Sky Conference championship may hinge on this one. If the Bengals win, they will own a tiebreaker over the Lady Griz because Idaho State beat Montana in Pocatello earlier this season. If Montana wins, it will retain sole possession of first in the conference with just two weeks of league play remaining. Idaho State is the only Big Sky team Montana has not beaten this season.
Power rankings
1 Montana (9-2, 19-5): The Lady Griz lead the Big Sky in scoring at 75.3 points per game. They'll need to be good at both ends in their toughest two-game homestand of the season.
2 Weber State (5-6, 11-12): Hottest team in the Big Sky will put its three-game win streak on the line at Dahlberg Arena Thursday.
3 Idaho State (8-3, 16-7): Nothing seems to come easy for the Bengals these days. But if they should win their last five league games, they would own a tiebreaker with Montana by virtue of sweeping it.
4 Portland State (8-4, 18-7): Vikings have a favorable schedule with three of their last four league games at home. Their only road test is at Eastern Washington.
5 Montana State (8-4, 12-11): Like Portland State, the Bobcats were sizzling until an unexpected loss last weekend. Unlike the Vikings, the Cats have a rough slate the rest of the way, concluding with three road games.
6Northern Colorado (5-5, 11-12): Has the Bears' 12-day layoff been a good or bad thing? We'll find out Thursday when they visit Portland State.
7 Northern Arizona (4-8, 8-17): The Jacks' last four conference games are on the road, where they've posted a dismal 0-9 record.
8 Sacramento State (4-8, 6-18): Hornets can't seem to stop anyone, allowing close to 76 points per game.
9 Eastern Washington (1-11, 4-21): The Eagles have averaged 16.9 turnovers per game in conference play.
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