Second chance points and three-point shooting spelled disaster for the Cougars, snuffing early hopes for an upset
The Washington State Cougar women’s basketball team failed to pull off the upset victory over the two-time defending WCC tournament champion Portland Pilots Monday afternoon, falling 72-57 after holding a lead as large as 12 points near the end of the first half.
Both teams had their struggles finding their rhythm early, with the Cougar offense scoring relatively effectively in the first quarter thanks to three early assists from Astera Tuhina and six first quarter points for Tara Wallack. Portland struggled with their shooting in the first, shooting just 23% from the field. Even so, offensive rebounds and second-chance opportunities allowed the Pilots to only trail by one entering the second frame.
The Cougars had their most impactful stretches when limiting Portland’s effectiveness in the paint. The second quarter was by far the strongest for the Cougars, exploding for 24 points on 9/14 shooting as a team led by a couple slick plays from Ele Villa. Portland was reduced to just four paint points in the second compared to WSU’s 18, allowing the Cougs to lead by as much as 12 and take a nine-point lead going into halftime.
A lot of WSU’s success in the second frame came from the ability to beat Portland’s full court press. On multiple occasions, the Cougars were able to find open lanes to the basket and run up the floor with numbers after getting past Portland’s forecheck.
The Italian goes EURO!
Eleonora Villa steps through for the bucket and the Cougs lead 29-25!#GoCougs | @ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/2JKXomZHIu
— WSU Cougar Women’s (@WSUCougarWBB) March 10, 2025
The third quarter for the Cougars can be best described in a single word: disaster. Portland came out hot, scoring in rapid succession while WSU struggled to keep up. The struggles in the paint and defensive rebounding from the first quarter would emerge once again this time, drastically swinging the tides of the game. Portland amassed seven offensive rebounds in the third, scoring 10 second-chance points and 16 of a total of 26 points in the paint before the quarter would end. WSU, conversely, scored just seven points on 3/19 shooting from the field. A buzzer beating three from Ele Villa would marginally ease the pain, but the damage had been done. Portland led 56-46 heading into the final 10 minutes.
What was once a commanding lead was now a defecit of the same margin as the more experienced Pilots sought to close out the game. Another five offensive rebounds and 10 more paint points for Portland kept the last chance scoring efforts of Dayana Mendes and Ele Villa at bay. The final buzzer rang throughout the arena, and the final score read Portland: 72, Washington State: 57.
Portland was able to successfully outperform WSU on the interior, especially when it came to second-chance points and offensive rebounds. Portland finished with 24 offensive boards and 23 second chance points, compared to 14 offensive rebounds and just 11 second chance points for WSU.
The three point shots for the Cougars were simply not falling, going 2/18 as a team compared to the Pilots, who found success making seven total, going 3/8 in the second half from beyond the arc.
Wallack, Ele Villa, and Mendes all led WSU scoring with 11 points each, with Mendes leading the charge with 13 total rebounds, five coming on offense, but the team struggled with shooting efficiency as the trio combined to go 12/40 from the field.
Portland now seeks to win the WCC tournament for a third consecutive year with a matchup against the Oregon State Beavers set for Tuesday.
For Washington State, their season comes to a potential close as their remaining hope for postseason play in a tournament outside of the NCAA tournament.