When the Washington State women’s basketball team last won
a conference game, UCLA’s Nikki Blue was barely old enough to
drive.
The Bruins’ freshman phenom ensured the Cougars’
dubious two-year streak would continue, tallying 26 points as UCLA
ran over the hapless Cougars last night at Friel Court in Pullman,
Wash. 86-70.
“Playing them was just what the doctor ordered,”
head coach Kathy Olivier said. “It was a great warmup for the
Washington game, and a good way to get back on track.”
The third-place Bruins (12-7, 7-3 Pac-10) snapped a three-game
losing streak and pulled within 1.5 games of No. 7 Stanford for the
conference lead. Meanwhile Washington State (0-18, 0-10 Pac-10)
tumbled to its 31st straight conference loss, the 41st in a row
overall.
“We did not want to be the first team to lose to
them,” senior guard Michelle Greco said. “They play
extremely hard at home.”
After a sluggish start, the Bruins methodically built a 15-point
halftime lead behind 53 percent shooting in the first half. A 7-0
run out of halftime punctuated by a Nikki Blue three-pointer
effectively put the game out of reach.
Blue shot 12-of-17 from the field and repeatedly overwhelmed the
Cougars with her quickness and athleticism.
“Nikki’s such an explosive player,” head coach
Kathy Olivier said. “She did a great job of working hard
tonight. She used her quickness defensively to get a lot of layups
and easy baskets.”
Junior forward Bianca McCall led the Cougars with 21 points,
albeit just two in the first half.
After avoiding what could have been an embarrassing upset last
night, the Bruins will attempt to pull one of their own tomorrow
against No. 25 Washington (16-3, 8-2 Pac-10).
UCLA hammered the Huskies at Pauley Pavilion earlier this month
72-46, but some extenuating circumstances may have contributed to
the lopsided nature of the final score. Washington’s Kayla
Burt collapsed due to heart failure and nearly died just three days
before the game took place.
“I’m sure Washington has this date circled on the
calendar,” Olivier said. “They were going through some
things the last time. We have to prove that game was not a
fluke.”
The Huskies shot just 23.9 percent from the field in their first
meeting, but they have won seven of their last eight games since
that loss. If UCLA can pull the upset tomorrow night, it will move
into a second-place tie with the Huskies.
“It’s a big game for us,” Greco said.
“They’re going to want to beat us really
bad.”
“We’re going to be the hunted,” added Olivier.
“If we come out of this road trip 2-0, that would be
sweet.”