The Aztecs showed the crowd why it doesn’t matter how you start, but how you finish is what wins games. Coming into a tight contest late in the game, SDSU went on an 11-0 scoring run and built a 17-point lead as they cruised to a home victory.
Senior forward Kim Villalobos helped the SDSU down the stretch, recording her second double-double of the season with 16 points and 13 rebounds. She also contributed to three of the team’s 12 steals.
“I’ve seen a little bit more consistency in her game and she’s been efficient with the shots she’s taking…She has to rebound, defend, score and share the balls,” said Aztecs’ head coach Stacie-Terry Hutson postgame.
San Diego State women’s basketball (18-9, 7-7 MW) took down Utah State (2-23, 1-12 MW) at Viejas Arena on Feb. 15 in a Mountain West matchup, 78-63.
Coming into this game, the Aztecs looked to get back in the win column, as they only had five more regular season games. A win tonight would start a potential late-season push to advance themselves in the MW standings.
Both teams came out firing, combining for 20 field goals in the first quarter. The game turned into an immediate shootout, with SDSU and Utah State each making three shots from behind the arc.
Freshman guards Naomi Panganiban and Nat Martinez made an immediate impact after Panganiban drew a charge and finished at the rim to give the Aztecs an early lead. Martinez added to this momentum by drilling a corner three, giving SDSU a 9-2 advantage.
“They get in the gym. Nat is the first in the gym. She’s always putting shots up. Naomi has a levity and a goofiness about her that just brings light to the team,” Terry-Hutson said regarding the impact of their freshman stars.
The Aggies put an end to the hot start by going on a 10-0 with a couple of three-pointers of their own.
The rest of the quarter would continue to be a shootout, as both teams combined for six total threes. The Aztecs found themselves in a slight deficit that would be erased immediately with three tough finishes from junior guard Veronica Sheffey.
This brought the first quarter to a close, all tied up at 23-23. SDSU shot 50% from the field, with 42.9% from three.
Coming into the second, both teams slowed down as there were only three total baskets in the first half of the quarter.
Despite a sluggish few minutes, a few consecutive layups would give the Aztecs another lead late in the half. Senior forward Adryana Quezada drained a deep two from the top of the key to give SDSU a seven-point lead with just two minutes left.
After a much-needed 8-0 from the Aztecs, the Aggies made a little push to cut the deficit down. Villalobos knocked down a routine fadeaway at the buzzer to give the Aztecs a lead going into halftime, 40-36.
The struggles continued coming out of the half, with just two buckets from SDSU in the first half of the third.
SDSU and Utah State began trading buckets once again, where the Aztecs’ advantage was cut to two.
Junior guard Erin Houpt was the spark plug that SDSU needed with a corner three, followed by another three from long distance to extend the lead to seven. The crowd erupted after seeing that bucket fall, giving momentum back to the Aztecs as the fourth quarter approached.
“Once I hit those two, I think we were all feeling pretty confident. We got a little bit of a lead, so again we had the momentum going into the fourth,” said Houpt.
The intensity and tension were felt throughout Viejas, as Sheffey collided with an Aggies’ guard. Despite getting up slowly, Sheffey remained in the game.
Following the hard foul, Villalobos blocked Utah State’s center that was called a foul. The controversial call had the crowd in disbelief and confusion. Whether you believe in superstition or not, the Aggies missed both free throws. Ball don’t lie, I guess.
The frustration from the Aztecs didn’t faze their ability to execute as Panganiban made a three to give the Aztecs their first double-digit lead.
“We knew we had to take a bigger lead to close the game…I think it’s because our defense was turning into offense and we had a lot of good transition points,” Houpt said.
Houpt continued to show up when it mattered, as she created space for a mean stepback three. This gave the Aztecs a 13-point lead, their largest of the game thus far.
“She outworks everybody…She stepped up today and I’m hoping that she’ll get that confidence and it’ll take her over the next couple games,” Terry-Hutson said.
The lead eventually grew to 15 and would go back and forth the rest of the game. However, SDSU never lets the Aggies cut the lead down to below 10.
The Aztecs closed out the game strong and secured a must-win game at home. This advances their home record to 8-5 with two more home games of the season. SDSU looks to take this victory into the rest of the season, with hopes of claiming a high seed for the postseason.
“We’re still fighting for a bye,” Terry-Hutson said. “We need to do what we need to do, and handle our business and win our games. And hopefully, if we do that, we’ll be able to get that bye going into the conference tournament.”
SDSU takes on Nevada in another home matchup at Viejas Arena, on Feb. 19 at 11 a.m.
