Aikman Fang (@AikmanFang) – SJSU women’s basketball Beat Reporter
San Jose State women’s basketball (3- 20, 1-11 MW) led for the first 39 minutes but fell short in the final minute to Colorado State (16-8, 9-4 MW) inside the Provident Credit Union Event Center on Thursday night.
The Rams’ comeback hopes were answered when a foul was called on senior guard Jada Holland with it tied 57-57 and four seconds left in the game. Junior guard Cailyn Crocker made both free throws and sealed the 59-57 win for Colorado State. Crocker finished with 12 points and a perfect 10-10 from the free throw line.
“That’s the number two team in the conference, for them to fight like they did… and even make some plays down the stretch when we needed it. I’m super proud” said head coach April Phillips.
Despite the loss, Holland recorded a game-high 18 points, six rebounds, and two steals. She currently leads the Mountain West with 2.5 steals per game.
The Spartans also outrebounded the Rams 41-30. Four SJSU women’s basketball players finished the game with six rebounds or more. Fifth-year senior guard Aarion Nichols provided 10 points, eight rebounds, and two steals. Additionally, sophomore forward Nailea Nicholas recorded seven points and seven rebounds.
They’re hungry, they want to win and obviously, it was a major emphasis for us. . . one of our game goals was to win the rebounding war,” said Phillips.
The Rams struggled offensively to start the game, shooting 4-16 from the field in the first quarter.
Holland led the Spartans to a 19-11 lead at the end of the first with seven points off 3-5 shooting.
SJSU carried their momentum by making their first four shots to start the second quarter and extended their lead to 27-15 with 7:19 left in the period.
The Rams bounced back by forcing the Spartans to commit 10 turnovers in the second quarter and only trailed 32-28 at the end of the first half. Colorado State also shot a perfect 11-11 from the charity stripe in the first half.
Holland led the game with 13 points off an efficient 6-9 shooting at the intermission. The Spartans, as a whole, shot 54.2% from the field and outrebounded the Rams 19-13 in the first half.
SJSU then went ice-cold, shooting 33% from the field. The Spartans, however, outrebounded the Rams 12-8 and lead 47-39 at the end of the third quarter.
Colorado State surged back by starting the fourth quarter with a 10-2 run and tied it 49-49 after freshman guard Hannah Ronsiek made a 3-pointer with 7:10 left in the game.
The Rams’ free throw shooting played a vital part as they shot 18-21 from the charity stripe over the course of the game. The Spartans shot a subpar 12-20 from the charity stripe.
SJSU will regroup as it tries to snap out of a 4-game losing streak when it hosts San Diego State this Saturday inside the Provident Credit Union Event Center at 1 p.m.