The Cowgirls survived last night in Salt Lake City in a game that was not pretty, it was not easy, all of which makes it a little more satisfying.
OSU trailed 19-16 after the 1st quarter, 39-35 at the half, and were trailing by nine with just 42 seconds left in the 3rd quarter before Micah Gray hit a 3. That was the spark the Cowgirls needed, and it led them on a 9-0 run over the next 2:45.
Jadyn Wooten completed an old-fashioned 3-point play with 7:57 to go in the game, then after Utah scored on the next possession, Micah Gray hit a big 3 to give the Cowgirls a 59-58 lead with 7:08 to go.
The two teams exchanged blows from that point on, and it wasn’t until Praise Egherevba hit a put back, and one, with 31 seconds left that OSU took the lead for the last time.
OSU went on to win 68-64 in a “gritty” hard-fought game against, Utah who dropped to 20-6 on the year.
The Stats
The Cowgirls had 3 ladies score in double digits and were led by Micah Gray with her 18. OSU made just 6 of its 23 shots from behind the arc and shot just 37% from the floor overall. So, it wasn’t a great shooting night.
But, the Cowgirls saved the day by pulling down 20 offensive rebounds and outscoring Utah 18-5 in second-chance points. That allowed this team to win despite being outplayed in most other statistical measures.
The Action
Micah Gray was “THE ANSWER”! While Egherevba had an awesome game and hit the game-winner, Micah Gray hit, IMO, the biggest shot of the game. The Cowgirls had fallen down 9 with just seconds to go in the 3rd Quarter when Gray hit a huge 3 that sparked a 9-0 to tie the game with 7:57 to go.
Part of that run was her 2nd 3-pointer in a row with 8:30 left.
Gray was the leading scorer, so she scored a lot, but more importantly, she scored at the most critical moments.
And, her excellent scoring and overall play have been consistent. She is averaging 17 points in her last 4 games, so as the crunch time has come upon us, she’s elevated her game.
Double Double Alert….Give Praise a lot of PRAISE!
10 HUGE points, and 11 even HUGER rebounds. I’m pretty sure that HUGER isn’t a word, but her performance last night was so good it deserved a word of its own.
10 points, 11 Boards, 4 of 7 from the field, 5 offensive rebounds.
OSU outscored Utah 18-8 off of 2nd chance points, which was one of the biggest factors, and Egheverba, and her 6 offensive boards were THE main reason for that.
In fact, between her and Magassa, they combined for 10 offensive boards, and without those, this team would have lost last night. I’m confident in saying that!
She hit the game-winning shot, played physical, and allowed OSU to play inside out as Utah concentrated on guarding the 3-point line. Shots opened up for Gray and others on the perimeter, because Egherevba and Magassa played so good in the low post.
The mark of a good player is how they contribute on nights when things aren’t perfect, and last night was anything but for Anna Gret Asi. She was just 1-9 from 3, and 3 of 14 overall, but still found a way to be the 2nd leading scorer with 15 points. She also had 4 assists, so she found a way to directly contribute to close to 30 of the 68 points scored by the Cowgirls.
She scored off the dribble, drew fouls off the dribble, got to the line 9 times, and made 8. She’s a great shooter but was more than just that last night. She was a great scorer, and there’s a big difference.
Asi was the 2nd leading scorer with 15, was 8-9 from the free throw line, had 4 assists, and 2 boards, and led the Cowgirls in the most minutes played at 38.
These are the types of performances that are the most impressive for me.
Jadyn Wooten only scored 6 points last night, but, in her typical fashion, they came when it mattered the most. In fact, her old-fashioned 3-point play with 7:57 to go tied the game on the back end of a 9-0 Cowgirls run.
She also had 8 rebounds, so she’s not afraid to stick her nose down in the paint and get physical. She hits big shots, plays her best ball when it matters the most, and does whatever it is the team needs her to do to win games.
She’s a PTPer with the game on the line!
Wanted to give a shout-out to Stailee Heard! The mark of a true leader isn’t how they lead when things are great, it’s how they lead when they’re not the primary focus. Heard has had her lowest 2 scoring games of the year during this trip to Utah and didn’t blink providing the same “winning” mentality, energy, and leadership.
I’m honestly more impressed with her mannerisms and focus last night than I have been with anything else she’s done.
Tenin Magassa came up HUGE last night! 9 points, 4 of 8 from the field, 6 rebounds, 4 on the offensive glass, and 3 blocks.
Her physical play, and ability to alter shots, block shots, post up, rebound and score was huge in the win for the Cowgirls.
This team can shoot the lights out but also has to find ways to win on nights when the shooting isn’t great, which is going to happen from time to time. And, when it happens on the road, things become even more difficult.
That’s when you need to be able to find some easy shots in the paint, rebound the ball for 2nd chances, and increase your margin for error. That’s what happens when Magassa is a big factor!
In football, the recipe to win road games is to run the ball, stop the run, and then play good defense. The equivalent to that in basketball is to get easy shots, keep the other team from getting easy shots,and then make it hard for them to score. That’s 100% exactly what Magassa did for this team last night
Super Proud of Coach Hoyt! After losing at BYU and then getting down 9 with under a minute to go in the 3rd, it would have been easy to get negative or panic. Trust me, when that happens, your kids sense it, and it snowballs from there.
But, quite the opposite, that’s when Coach Hoyt showed the most amount of positive energy and provided the best example for her girls.
As a coach, every game is a new challenge. In some games, your team comes out perfect, and it’s just about stepping back, not over-coaching, and not screwing them up. In other games, your team might not have the amount of energy you like, and you need to be a little more “old school” with them. In other games, they might be doing everything right, in terms of effort and focus, but just aren’t executing or playing well. On those nights, that’s when you have to stay positive and shoot that positive energy into their veins.
That’s exactly what Coach Hoyt did last night for her team, and I wanted to point that out, because, without it, I don’t think the Cowgirls would have won this game. Well done Coach Hoyt, think big with this team, and don’t let anyone settle for less!
What’s next?
The Cowgirls return home to Gallagher Iba Arena on Saturday at 2:00 to take on another former Pac 12 school, who also has a good squad as well, in Colorado. The Buffs are 17-8 overall and 8-6 in Conference play, so the Cowgirls will have their hands full and need as many people inside the Arena as possible.
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