USU women’s basketball comes up short on Senior Night
In the final game of the regular season, the Utah State University women’s basketball team fell 54-52 to the New Mexico Lobos on Thursday night. Not only was it the final Mountain West game of the season for the Aggies, it was also senior night, with forward Hailey Bassett, forward Marlene Aniombousso and guard Lindsey Jensen-Baker being honored during the pregame.
In the first quarter, it looked as though the Aggies were aware of the weight of the final game at home for its seniors. The team played with energy and focus, as Jensen-Baker scored the first points of the night on the Aggies’ initial possession. Even though the Lobos tied the game, a minute later, both teams traded baskets until 5:24 remained in the quarter. The Aggies went on a run to pull ahead, scoring nine points to the Lobos’ one, ending the quarter leading 16-8.
The Aggies carried that momentum over in the early stages of the second quarter, but the Lobos battled back. From the 5:49 mark to the end of the quarter, the Aggies could not score and were unable to stop the Lobos. In the final six minutes, New Mexico outscored the Utah State 12-2. What had been a comfortable eight-point lead for the Aggies at the start of the quarter, turned into a five-point deficit by the end of it, thanks to the Lobos’ margin of 19-6.
“We fought hard tonight, we wanted to come out on senior night and make sure we fought as hard as we could,” said USU head coach Ben Finkbeiner. “We dipped in the second quarter, had some turnovers, struggled a bit with our offense, weren’t as aggressive as we wanted to be so that translated to a bad second quarter. But we sure responded well and made plays at the end.”
In the third quarter, the Aggies had difficulty scoring from anywhere on the court, but what they lacked in offensive proficiency, they made up for with defensive tenacity. For the first 1:45, the Aggies held the Lobos scoreless, but were only able to put up one point themselves, with Basset scoring 1-of-2 from the line.
“I thought all of us just really wanted to play for each other, where as the last games it’s been kind of more individual, not in a bad way, but everyone’s just kind of doing their own thing without the chemistry of the team and I think that’s why we’ve been struggling this year,” Bassett said.
After the Lobos finally scored, Utah State loosened up offensively. Sophomore forward Taylor Franson scored a quick transition layup following a missed jumper by a Lobo guard. The Aggies scored again when junior guard Emmie Harris went to the line and made both free throws; USU pulled within two. However, New Mexico scored again and the Aggies struggled to keep up. By the end of the third quarter, the visiting team held a commanding 40-32 lead.
That being said, Utah State refused to quit in the fourth quarter and controlled the play throughout. The two teams went back-and-forth, with the Aggies gaining ground.Then, with only 37 seconds left in the final quarter, Basset shot a three over the outstretched arm of the defender and drained it, pulling them to within three.
After the three, New Mexico called a timeout and came back onto the court with the intention of running out the clock. They brought the time down to four seconds and shot a three, which bounced off the rim, but wound up back in their own hands. They quickly called a time out and the Aggies had no choice but to foul on the inbound. New Mexico’s senior forward Jordan Hosey rose to the occasion and made both free throws to put her team up by five.
“We were so close. If we didn’t foul her and she missed her free throws we could have been tied up, but it doesn’t always work out that way,” Bassett said. “But I’m glad about the way we finished.”
With three seconds left, and an insurmountable deficit, USU inbounded the ball to Jensen-Baker. She put up a last-second three which found the bottom of the net, though it served ultimately to bring the Aggies’ margin of defeat to only two points. Nevertheless, it showed the mindset that the three seniors showed all season. They demonstrated that, even in the midst of impossible odds, they tried their hardest to achieve the best result, even if it fell short. This mindset has served as both a blessing and a curse at points in the season according to Bassett.
The seniors are honored during the pregame. Photo by Hailey Larson
“My teammates make fun of me because I get so angry because I just want to do so much for the team,” she said. “But I think that’s when I get in my head, so I kind of just relax and that’s when the nature passion just kind of comes out and you just go with it, and that’s what I need to do more.”
In the final home game of their collegiate careers, Jensen-Baker and Basset (Aniambossuo did not play) demonstrated heart in the face of adversity. Both players set new career-highs in rebounds — with Basset grabbing 14 and Jensen-Baker grabbing 12. Basset led the team in scoring with 13 points and Jensen-Baker was not too far behind, with nine. Franson also grabbed a career-high in rebounds with 12.
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