Breann Lujan-Halcon
blujanha@uwyo.edu
Cowgirl basketball took a tough loss on the road to the No. 8 team in the Mountain West, the San Diego State Aztecs, on Wednesday night. Wyoming, 12-14 overall and ninth in conference standings, fell 53-40 to the 11-15 Aztecs in Viejas Arena.
“I thought defensively we played as well as throughout the year,” Cowgirls head coach Joe Legerski told gowyo.com. “Offensively, we struggled and let the frustration boil over. We just need to find a way to regroup and play a tough one on Saturday against UNLV.”
Leading the way for Wyoming was sophomore forward Natalie Baker with ten points, three rebounds and three blocks. Senior guard Marquelle Dent followed on the scoreboard with nine points, six boards, four assists and two steals. Junior guard Hailey Ligocki put up eight points, three steals and three boards.
At the half, the Cowgirls trailed the Aztecs 24-14. After having led the first period 12-6, not allowing the Aztecs any leeway, the Aztecs came back on an 18-2 run to shift the game. During their run, the Aztecs held the Cowgirls to a seven-minute scoring drought.
Coming back out of the locker rooms, the Aztecs pulled the game up to 28-14 for a 12-point run before the Cowgirls could find their way to the scoreboard in the second half. A steal by Roberts set Dent up for a jumper down the court, snapping Wyoming’s scoring drought. The Cowgirls’ point drought lasted nine minutes after Dent’s layup four minutes into the second quarter.
Guard Ahjalee Harvey led the offensive effort for the Aztecs with 16 points for the game, accompanied by eight boards and two assists.
A three pointer by Baker with four minutes left in the third brought the Cowgirls within nine before the Aztecs began to pull away again.
Midway through the fourth, the Aztecs held their biggest lead of the game with 20-points, leading the Cowgirls 49-29. The Cowgirls’ defense held the Aztecs to four points in the remaining time as they drilled down the margin to 13-points before the buzzer blew.
The Cowgirls will return to the Arena Auditorium for the last time this season on Saturday. They will host the UNLV Rebels, the No. 5 team in the Mountain West. The Rebels are 8-8 in MW play and 15-12 overall. They are coming off a 78-68 victory over No. 3 in the MW, the Boise State Broncos. Tip off is set for 2 p.m.
