SAN DIEGO – SDSU’s womens basketball team edged past the Colorado State Rams 64-61 in a close game on Wednesday night. The Aztecs wore their pink uniforms for PlayforKay cancer awareness which helped motivate the team to play their best.
“We talked about strength and playing for something bigger than yourself,” said head coach Stacie Terry-Hutson. “I thought we did a good job of that tonight.”
The Aztecs took the strength-based mentality into their rematch with Colorado State. The teams last played on Jan. 28 in a low-scoring affair, when both teams’ defenses dominated and SDSU emerged with a 2-point victory, 46-44.
Colorado State scored the first points of Wednesday’s game, but SDSU guard Naomi Panganiban quickly responded with a made jumper, and scored the Aztecs first seven points from the floor. Guard Nat Martinez drained two free throws before the end of the quarter to put the Aztecs up 18-16.
Both defenses tightened in the second quarter, with the teams scoring just 12 points each. Panganiban committed three fouls in the first half which limited her playing time and hindered SDSU’s ability to get their offense going. The Aztecs maintained their 2-point lead with a 30-28 halftime score.
The Rams found their momentum coming out of the half. However, SDSU guard Kaelyn Hamilton kept the Aztecs in the game with six third-quarter points. Colorado State forced turnovers and outscored SDSU in the third quarter to put them up 49-48.
SDSU returned to form in the final quarter. Guard Nala Williams led the way and played a key part in multiple game-sealing plays. Williams assisted forward Maria Konstantinidou’s jumper that gave the Aztecs a 6-point lead with less than three minutes left.
“It was just playing for each other [and] as I said, we shared the ball,” Konstantinidou said. “We got to be ready to hit those shots.”
Williams also drained SDSU’s final shot to maintain the lead. Rams guard Brooke Carlson made a layup and hit the and-1 free throw to cut SDSU’s lead to three. With a missed three-pointer by the Aztecs, Colorado State had a chance to tie the game with less than 20 seconds left. In the game’s final seconds, the Rams got two shots off but missed the first, and Williams blocked the second.
Alongside the pink jerseys, many of the Aztecs wore Jordan Brand’s Tatum 4’s in an all-pink colorway. Soleil Dam/Her Sports SD
Three Aztecs scored 14 or 15 points. Hamilton matched her career-high of 15 points, 11 in the second half. Panganiban and Williams each had 14 points. Konstantinidou played a season-high 25 minutes and had a team-high seven rebounds to go with two blocks.
Wednesday’s victory was significant for the Aztecs, as they faced a talented defense and a top-5 conference opponent. This win, along with UNLV’s loss to Wyoming, gives SDSU a two-game advantage over the Lady Rebels for the top spot in the Mountain West conference standings.
Next Up
SDSU plays their next game at elevation in Reno against the Nevada Wolfpack on Saturday. Read more about how the team prepares for high-elevation games here. Stream the game on the Mountain West Network. They return home to Viejas Arena on Feb. 18 to face the UNLV Lady Rebels.
