Lady Ags top last season’s performance, win four games
USU v. Wyoming State Cowgirls
The USU women’s basketball team dropped to 2-6 after falling to the Wyoming State University Cowgirls 62-43 in Laramie, Wyo., on Dec. 17.
This game marked the end of a five-game road trip for the Aggies; they won only one of these games. USU had not traveled to Laramie to face the Cowgirls since 1987. The series now stands at 13-4 in favor of WSU.
The first half of the game ended with the Aggies behind by four. From there, the Cowgirls out-scored the Aggies 34-19, leaving USU in the dust. Junior guard Taylor Richards offered 12 points in the game, while junior forward Jenny Gross put up 10 points.
Head Coach Reagan Pebley said she was not happy with USU’s showing in the second half. With the habits the team has been falling into, the game snowballed quickly, Pebley said.
“If was a tale of two halves,” Pebley said, “I was really happy with our first half performance. We showed a lot of improvement and did some things that we have been working on, and then whether it was psyche or bad habits, the second half was just really bad.”
The first half saw seven score ties and the lead was flip-flopped 10 times. USU shot only 20 percent from the floor for the entire game, while the Cowgirls shot more than double that with a field goal percentage of 42.6 percent.
Beginning the second half with a bang, Wyoming pulled ahead with a 14-8 run. With the score standing at 42-32, the Cowgirls had no problem securing their win with a final score of 58-37.
“I think our struggles started there late in the first half when they got a bunch of offensive boards there in the last two minutes and few possessions,” Pebley said. “That is just an Achilles’ heel we have right now, giving up offensive redounds.”
Due to extensive snow fall in and around Laramie, the Aggies were forced to stay Sunday night.
Dec. 20, 2006
USU v. Portland
The Aggie women gave Portland a run for their money at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum on Dec. 20, winning 68-58.
Starting out the first half with a 23-4 scoring run, USU went on to clench the lead shooting an impressive 41.9 percent from the field.
Although the women posted a season-low free-throw percentage of 41.2 percent, it was still enough to beat the Pilots. Twenty-one turnovers were forced by USU, which they then turned into 24 points at their end of the court.
Sophomore guard Ana Pares shot 10 points from the field, doubling her career-high and giving the Aggies the boost they needed to win the game. Pares shot three three-pointers within three minutes of game play to give the Aggies a first-half lead of 29-16.
Junior forward Jenny Gross contributed a career-high 17 points, as well as a first ever three-pointer and career-high three points from freshman guard Indira Kaljo.
Dec. 22, 2006
USU v. Saint Louis
USU women’s basketball came close to victory, but had no luck against Saint Louis as they fell 60-57 at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum on Dec. 22.
A failed buzzer-beater three-point shot by junior guard Taylor Richards dealt the Aggies a heartbreaking three-point loss. Richards had 15 points in the game to lead the Aggies while also hitting 6-for-10 on free throws.
The Aggies did not open the first-half well, shooting only 1-for-9 from the field, as Saint Louis led 14-9 early on. The Aggies then answered by scoring enough to gain a lead of 29-26 after hitting 11-for-18. Senior guard Camille Brox aided with a lay-up at the tail-end of the first half, which added to her season-high eight points.
The Billikens then found their way to the front to lead 36-32 at half-time. As they continued into the second half, Saint Louis maintained the lead, climbing to 46-39.
Lagging in three-point shooting and free throws, the Aggies shot a 38.9 percent field goal percentage for the game compared to SLU’s 34.5 percent.
Senior forward Brittany Phillips scored 10 points in the game along with her team-high eight rebounds and season-high three steals. Junior guard Jamelah Brown also contributed with a career-high five assists.
Dec. 29, 2006
USU v. Iowa State
The Aggies suffered a 70-40 loss to the Iowa State Cyclones on Dec. 29 at the HIlton Coliseum during the first night of competition at the American Family Insurance Cyclone Classic.
USU now falls to 3-8 for the season. Losing to Iowa on Cyclone turf marks a 7-0 run at home for ISU.
Junior forward Jenny Gross had the most field goals for the Aggies with nine points in the game. ISU maintained three players in double digits, led by Heather Ezell’s 18 points, most of which came from her five three-pointers.
Opening the game with a 10-0 lead, ISU hit the first four shots of the game. The Aggies then fought back by nailing the next eight points, narrowing the deficit 10-8. But the excitement was short-lived as the Cyclones owned the next nine points, regaining a lead of 19-8.
Much of the team’s rally in the first half was credited to freshman guard Indira Kaljo. Hitting back-to-back three-pointers gave USU a brief flash of hope, but as half-time approached it was obvious there was not much they could do to lessen the ISU lead.
The second half began with a not-so-surprising lead of 44-23 for ISU. With only 6:40 left to play in the game, the lead swelled to 68-33 and the Aggies never had a chance to regroup.
Freshman guard LeeAnn Palo posted her first points as an Aggie, along with freshman Sharvelle Hurd who made her first free throw for USU.
Dec. 30, 2006
USU v. Colgate
Aggie women outdid last season’s win total by beating Colgate 58-42 at the Iowa State American Family Insurance Cyclone Classic on Dec. 30.
USU now pulls to 4-8 for their season play, besting last season’s win total of three. For their first victory of the Cyclone Classic the Aggies held Colgate to 42, the lowest point value they have allowed since 1984.
“The win was really important for us because A, we pick up our first win the Classic, and B, we end our preseason with a win going into conference play,” Head Coach Reagan Pebley said.
First half play started with a bang as junior guard Jenny Gross posted four points, assisted by a three-pointer by senior forward Brittany Hagen. When half-time rolled around, the Aggies led 32-19, giving them a 13-point advantage as they went into the second half.
Colgate attempted to lessen the point gap, but to no avail. Junior guard Taylor Richards was the team leader in scoring with 11 points, followed by 10 points from Gross. Redshirt freshman Sharvelle Hurd did her job on the defensive side, posting six rebounds and adding in four points to the tally.
Shooting a 38.3 field goal percentage overall and 72.7 from the free-throw line, the Aggies surpassed the Raiders who had a 30.6 field goal percentage. With 1:04 left in the second, USU led by 18, their biggest spread of the game.
“For us to pass that number three mark and get our fourth win, especially to get it before entering conference play, shows the growth of our team,” Pebley said. “We know our team is better but it just gives the physical evidence of that.”
Jan. 4, 2007
USU v. Boise State
Western Athletic Conference play began for women’s basketball with an 80-70 loss to Boise State and a fall to 4-9 for the season.
Despite 15 points from senior forward Brittany Phillips, 12 points from junior guard Danyelle Snelgro and 11 from junior guard Taylor Richards, the team could not seem to get ahead of the Broncos.
Richards also had five assists to add to her career total of 245. This mark ties her in career assists with former Aggie Pam Shirley, who played for USU from 1977-79.
As they trailed the Broncos coming into the second half, the Aggies gained back some points, going on a 9-0 point run. USU managed to narrow the gap 62-61, but were once again pushed back as the Broncos went on a 12-0 run to bring the score to 74-61.
Boise State posted a 51.8 field goal percentage, and the Aggies could not hang on with their 47.5 percent. Although USU won the rebound competition 33-28, they were unable to turn that into a winning trait.
-ewads@cc.usu.edu