Cowgirls' season ends with loss to Boise State

The run wound up ending the Cowgirls' season with a 62-54 loss to Boise.

"We were excited and definitely ready for this tournament," UW guard Malene Pedersen said. "Unfortunately, our shots didn't fall in the fourth quarter."

The Cowgirls started strong and used a lengthy 11-1 run to build a 19-12 lead after the first quarter. Forward Allyson Fertig totaled six points, five rebounds and three blocks through the first 10 minutes, while Mya Hansen led the Broncos with 10 points on 3-of-5 shooting. 

Boise State responded with a 9-0 run midway through the second frame to take a slim two-point lead, but the Cowgirls closed the half on a 4-0 run to take a 29-27 lead into the halftime break.

The Cowgirls shot 13-of-22 (59.1%) from the field and 2-of-5 (40%) from deep through the first two quarters while holding Boise State to 11-of-31 (35.5%) and 3-of-9 (33.3%). The Broncos won the first-half turnover battle 9-3, but were outscored 20-12 in the paint.

UW opened the second half on a 10-4 run to race out to an eight-point lead midway through the third quarter. The Broncos countered with a 7-0 run to get back within one, but Pedersen knocked through a 3-pointer at the buzzer to push UW's lead back to four going into the final frame.

Boise State took its first lead of the second half from Hansen with 6 minutes, 34 seconds remaining to cap a 5-0 run. The Broncos continued the late surge with a separate 9-0 run later in the quarter to build their lead to 56-50 with 2:19 left.

The run eventually grew up to 14-0 into the final minute of the game after the Cowgirls missed eight consecutive shots. The Broncos were able to ice the game at the free-throw line in the final seconds to hold onto the eight-point win.

"I gotta take the heat of it for being able to finish games," UW coach Heather Ezell said. "There's something that hasn't been clicking for us, and, as a head coach, I have to take that responsibility. We have to do some things in practice maybe a little bit different so we start finishing games better.

"We give all the effort in the first, second and third quarter, and then we seem to hit something in the fourth quarter where, either the pressure gets a little to tight or whatnot, and that's on me. I gotta get them ready to finish all 40 minutes."

The Cowgirls were outscored 22-10 while shooting just 3-of-17 (17.6%) in the fourth quarter. Boise State finished the night 24-of-57 (42%) from the field, including a 8-of-15 (53.3%) mark in the final 10 minutes.

Fertig led the Cowgirls with 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting to go along with nine rebounds and seven blocks. Pedersen added 13 points, and Emily Mellema and Tess Barnes added seven each. UW shot just 4-of-17 (23.5%) from 3-point range against the Broncos.

Hansen led Boise State with a game-high 20 points, followed by Natalie Pasco with 10. The Broncos were 8-of-17 (47.1%) from deep.

Boise State moves on to play No. 7-seed San Diego State at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday in the semifinals. The Aztecs beat New Mexico 67-56 in the quarterfinals.

"The future is very bright," Ezell said. "We just need that chip on our shoulder. We have to take that into the offseason, and we have to really improve on some areas. We have to, once again, dig down and be able to get some stuff done when the coaches aren't in the gym.

"When the coaches aren't around this summer, (players need to say) 'I'm still going to put in that work, because I don't want to be in this position next year.'"

BOISE ST. 62, WYOMING 54

Wyoming...... 19 10 15 10 — 54

Boise State...... 12 15 13 22 — 62

Wyoming: Mellema 2-5 2-2 7, Barnes 3-12 0-0 7, Pedersen 6-10 0-1 13, Ustowska 2-6 0-0 5, Fertig 6-9 4-6 16, Savic 1-4 0-0 2, Dickerson 2-6 0-0 4. Totals: 22-52 6-9 54.

Boise State: Hansen 7-15 3-6 20, Naro 3-5 0-0 7, LaLotte 1-5 1-2 3, Pasco 4-10 0-0 10, Muse 4-8 0-0 8, Thompson 3-6 2-4 9, Lovrovich 1-2 0-0 2, Bayes 1-3 0-0 3, Hull 0-3 0-0 0. Totals: 24-57 6-12 62.

3-pointers: BSU 8-17 (Hansen 3-5, Naro 1-3, Pasco 2-4, Thompson 1-1, Bayes 1-3, Hull 0-1); UW 4-17 (Mellema 1-1, Barnes 1-5, Pedersen 1-3, Ustowska 1-5, Savic 0-1, Dickerson 0-2). Rebounds: BSU 34 (Hull 7); UW 30 (Fertig 9). Assists: BSU 16 (LaLotte 4, Hansen 4), UW 17 (Ustowska 5); Turnovers: BSU 9 (Hansen 3); UW 15 (Mellema 3, Barnes 3, Fertig 3). Steals: BSU 4 (Four with 1); UW 4 (Four with 1). Team fouls: BSU 12, UW 15.