The San Diego State women’s basketball team (19-9, 8-7 Mountain West) defeated the Nevada Wolfpack (11-17, 6-9 MW) 72-43 on Wednesday, Feb. 19 at Viejas Arena.
It was Field Trip Day inside of the arena as multiple schools from San Diego came to watch the game with a total of 4,088 fans.
The game against Nevada was delayed due to not having referees, and 40 minutes later the game started. As kids were waiting the staff entertained the crowd by inviting kids on the court and playing different basketball games.
Once the game started, the Aztecs went on a run, with senior forward Kim Villalobos scoring the first two points 26 seconds into the game.
On the next possession, Villalobos stole the ball and passed it to freshman guard Naomi Panganiban, then to junior guard Veronica Sheffey and lastly, it landed in freshman guard Nat Martinez’s hands to drain a three-pointer.
Martinez was on fire, going for a back-to-back three-pointer with the assist from Panganiban.
Martinez scored the next four points with two layups. The first layup was assisted by Villalobos, while the second came off a pivot move that left senior forward Adryana Quezada stunned.
Martinez finished the first quarter with 10 points in eight minutes.
“That little young lady is amazing,” head coach Stacie Terry-Hutson said about Martinez. “She could do a little bit of everything and she’s confident and works her tail off and is so deserving of all of that. Nat is just a hard-working kid and she deserves all of that.”
Even though Martinez had the hot hand, Sheffey, Panganiban, Quezada and senior forward Cali Clark contributed to a 22-13 lead in the first quarter.
Panganiban found her rhythm in the second quarter, as she scored eight points, including two three-pointers and a layup.
“I’m just trying to capitalize when my teammates find me,” Panganiban said. “Trying my best to, you know, hit my shot, not thinking, but more just shooting and keeping my confidence and it helps when Nat’s hitting, so it motivates me as well and the rest of the team.”
The Wolfpacks weren’t able to catch up with the Aztecs entering halftime with the score of 46-24.
In the third quarter, the Aztecs struggled offensively, scoring only 11 points. They went 4-15 in field goals, 1-5 in three-pointers and 2-2 on free throws, but their defense is what kept them alive.
“We’re at San Diego State, we’re known as a defensive school so we’re buying into that,” Terry-Hutson said. “We really, really focused this year on our defensive principles and I think it’s starting to pay off. There’s a couple things we need to clean up as we go into March, but for the most part, they’re trying really hard and trying to do what I’m asking them to do, and that’s all that I can ask for at this point.”
By the start of the fourth quarter, the Aztecs were up 57-39. The Wolfpack struggled, scoring just four points in the fourth quarter, while the Aztecs added 15 winning the game 72-43.
Freshman duo Martinez and Panganiban were the Aztecs’ leading scorers, each hitting double-digits. Martinez had a total of 12 points, three rebounds and an assist. Panganiban totaled 15 points, four assists, a rebound and a steal.
The Aztecs’ overall performance was 51.9% on field goals, 40% in three-pointers and 85.7% on free throws.
One area the Aztecs did well was not letting the Wolfpack score in efficient ways because they ended with 25% on field goals, 8% on three-pointers and 68.8% on free throws.
The Aztecs will take their last road trip of the season for their games against San Jose State and Air Force Academy. They will return to Viejas Arena for their season finale on March 4. for Senior Night when they face Fresno State at 6 p.m.
