BASKETBALL:
Washington State women upset No. 2 UCLA 85-82 for highest-ranked win in school history
Sun., Jan. 28, 2024 at 6:56 p.m. Spokane Spokesman-Review
LOS ANGELES – The Washington State women’s basketball posted its biggest win in school history Sunday afternoon.
It also may have suffered its biggest loss, too.
The Cougars held off No. 2-ranked UCLA 85-82 at storied Pauley Pavilion.
They had to do so after their top player, senior point guard Charlisse Leger-Walker, left the game with 7 minutes, 30 seconds remaining in the third quarter with what was described as a non-contact knee injury. She didn’t return.
“If you’re asking me, it never looks good when you go down like that in women’s basketball,” Ethridge said. “It typically doesn’t ever end up well. You’ve got to be patient and figure out the next plans for her.”
Moments before the injury, WSU had its biggest lead at 52-32. The Cougars would give up all but one point late in the game, but two free throws by Bella Murekatete with 16.7 seconds remaining provided the winning margin.
UCLA had three attempts at tying 3-point shots, but Washington State survived as time expired.
Leger-Walker had 15 of her 17 points in a first half that saw the Cougars take a 46-30 lead into halftime. She made 7 of 9 shots from the field in 19 minutes.
The Cougars showed just enough poise in pressure-packed moments in the final 5 minutes.
Murekatete scored a team-high 20 points to go with seven rebounds, four assists, three blocked shots and two steals. Eleonora Villa, who took over point guard duties when Leger-Walker left, had 18 points and three assists and Tara Wallack added 14 points including 12 of 14 free throws.
Ethridge said an initial evaluation from a doctor at UCLA said Leger-Walker’s knee looked good, but it’s hard to be hopeful with how she was after getting hurt. Ethridge said Leger-Walker will have further evaluations when the team returns to Pullman.
It appeared Leger-Walker injured the knee on a breakaway layup attempt as she planted to jump to the basket. With a defender close by, Leger-Walker crumpled to the floor on her own, Ethridge said.
WSU, which lost 70-62 at No. 11 USC on Thursday, improved to 15-6 overall, 4-4 in conference. UCLA slipped to 16-3 and 5-3.
The Cougars had to dig deep to finish.
“I know how good they are,” Ethridge said of UCLA. “That’s a program changer when you do that (win). I loved how they competed. I loved our mindset.”
The Cougars took a 65-53 lead into the fourth quarter.
UCLA opened the final period with a 5-0 spurt, and the Cougars extended the lead to nine shortly thereafter.
But the Bruins chipped away, pulling within 83-82 when Kiki Rice, who led all scorers with 25 points, made two free throws with 18.9 seconds remaining.
UCLA led once early at 5-2. The Cougars held the lead for 36 minutes.
“I thought they were one of the more committed defenses all year as far as ball pressure,” Ethridge said. “It became a thing where we just tried to survive it.”
Now the Cougars must find a way to replace Legar-Walker’s contributions with two more challenges around the corner. WSU returns home Friday when it meets third-ranked Colorado. No. 16 Utah, which was upset Sunday by No. 25 Oregon State (91-66), is at WSU on Sunday.
