NCAA Tournament: No. 4 OSU Women’s Basketball corrals No. 13 Boise State in first round-overtime thriller
March 23, 2019
Oregon State Women’s Basketball held off No. 13 Boise State in an overtime battle, winning in the first round of the NCAA Division-I Tournament with a final score of 80-75 on Saturday afternoon at Gill Coliseum.
The Beavers, who are ranked No. 4 in the tournament, once led by 14 points in the second quarter before the Broncos rallied back to take the lead late in the second half.
Down by four with 17 seconds left in the game, OSU was able tie the score, 66-66, forcing the game into overtime. In the extra quarter, the Beavers were able to outscore BSU, 14-9, taking the win and eliminating the Broncos from the tournament.
OSU junior guard Mikayla Pivec helped lead her team to the victory by scoring 20 points, 12 rebounds and three steals on the night. Pivec said the key to her performance came with the home-court advantage.
“It’s an awesome opportunity, this is the best fan base I have ever played in front of and we’ve traveled to a lot of places,” Pivec said. “Just having the extra energy when they really want us to get a stop, you can feel that and it fuels us.”
Sophomore guard Aleah Goodman came off the bench to also score 20 points for the Beavers. Goodman was recently named the Pac-12 Sixth Player of the Year after averaging 10.6 points per game in the regular season.
“Getting into overtime was a challenge so, we were all excited, new life,” Goodman said. “It’s March, there is going to be big shots all over the place. You can’t really get too comfortable.”
Sophomore forward Taya Corosdale dominated in the paint for the Beavers, racking up 15 rebounds, 13 points and four blocks against the Broncos.
According to OSU Head Coach Scott Rueck, the game was all about surviving and advancing to the next round of the tournament, which he said his team did well to win.
“They just didn’t quit. They kept making plays, and then they made big plays, huge shots and executed extremely well down the stretch,” Rueck said. “We knew it would be tough, and I also knew we’d have an amazing crowd.”
With this win, Oregon State will advance to the second round of the tournament to face the Gonzaga Bulldogs on Monday in Gill Coliseum at 6 p.m.