San Diego falls short in OT

Women’s basketball loses to the Portland Pilots 64-63 in WCC Championship game

Chris Spiering / Sports Editor / The USD Vista

University of San Diego was defeated by the Portland Pilots in the final seconds of the WCC Championship Game on Tuesday, 64-63.

USD women’s basketball advanced to the WCC Title after defeating the Pepperdine University Waves in the semi-finals Monday night. San Diego managed to grab 29 defensive rebounds en route to their 15-point victory, 59-44.

USD got out to an early 17-11 lead on Monday in the first quarter and never looked back from there. They never once lost the lead and their efforts on defense solidified the impressive win.

Junior guard Myah Pace finished with a game-high 19 points and six rebounds in 38 minutes. Senior center Leticia Soares also ended with 19 points and grabbed five rebounds. 

The Toreros were set to play in the WCC Title game for the first time since 2009, where they lost to Gonzaga. USD won the title last in 2008 after defeating Gonzaga, which propelled them into the NCAA Tournament. 

The WCC Title game started off hot for the Toreros as USD jumped out to an early six-point lead. Portland would find a way back into the game as the first quarter ended with USD up 12-11. 

The Pilots would manage to score 17 points in the second, holding USD to 13 points as Portland had a 28-25 lead going into halftime.  

The Torero offense came alive in the third quarter as they scored 18 points. It was back-and-forth the entire way to the finish as both offenses kept scoring. There were a ton of lead changes as both teams knew the WCC Title was at stake. 

The Toreros had a chance to win the game at the end of the fourth quarter as there were less than five seconds on the clock. The score was even at 58 and USD had the ball. The ball was inbounded to Pace, but she was immediately called for an offensive charge. The game would then go to overtime where it was a battle to the finish. 

San Diego had another chance to win the game, but the wide open three-point shot by redshirt-sophomore guard Erica Martinsen was just off the mark, and the Pilots stormed the court in celebratory fashion.  

Prior to the WCC tournament, the Toreros celebrated four seniors before the 62-58 victory over Pepperdine University Saturday, Feb. 29. The emotions were high for the Toreros as they knew they needed to defeat the Waves in order to clinch a triple-bye for the WCC Tournament. 

USD improved to 19-10 (13-5 WCC) and Pepperdine fell to 15-14 (8-10 WCC) to finish the regular season. San Diego secured that triple-bye and was the No. 2 seed behind No. 1 Gonzaga to start the tournament. 

The game against the Waves started out as an offensive clinic for both teams as the shots fell early. Pepperdine hit three of their first four shots of the game and redshirt-junior guard Jordyn Edwards started the game going 3-3 with seven points for the Toreros. 

Pace and Edwards both showed their aggression to score as they combined to tally the first 12 points for USD. 

The fourth quarter was definitely one for the books as both teams brought their all, down to the final seconds. Soares was the focal point for USD in the fourth quarter, as most of the offense involved her standing near the basket, grabbing rebounds, and making layups. 

It was a nail-biter as the final few minutes started to wind down. Senior forward Patricia Brossman nailed a late three pointer to tie the game at 53-53. The next possession, Brossman scored another layup to take the lead 55-53 with under three minutes to play. 

The senior knew that her time playing in the Jenny Craig Pavilion (JCP) was coming to an end. She wanted to make sure they came out with a win.

 “I just felt like it was my last time playing in the Jenny,” Brossman said. “I got to step up and try to use the opportunities to score when I can.” 

After the Waves regained the lead 58-55, there were just a few minutes left for USD to win the game. Pace and Edwards both hit clutch three-pointers in the final minute of the game to secure the 62-58 victory. The Toreros held Pepperdine to just eight points in the fourth quarter as they shot 3-12, shooting a below-average 25%. 

Senior guard Madison Pollock expressed her joy after the hard-fought victory. 

“We wanted it more,” Pollock said. “The work that we put in — in preseason and all season — paid off for tonight and this one just felt great.” 

Pace finished the game with a team-high 15 points and four rebounds, four assists, and two steals in the game. With her second steal of the game in the final 25 seconds, Pace is now the single-season record holder for steals, surpassing Maya Hood who set the mark in 2015. 

Edwards ended with 13 points, six rebounds, and five assists. Soares finished with 14 points, five rebounds, and two steals off the bench. 

It was a thrilling victory for San Diego and head coach Cindy Fisher couldn’t be happier with the way it ended. 

“It is completely what our year has been,” Fisher said. “Our defense just created some easy offense for us at the end of the game and our press just really bothered them. It was a great game all along and (Pepperdine) took that little lead and I was trying to decide on when to use that big press … and it just worked.” 

The four seniors who were honored before the game were guards Ana Ramos and Madison Pollock, center Leticia Soares, and forward Patricia Brossman. Coach Fisher talked about her best moments with her seniors. 

“They all have big personalities,” Fisher said. “They all just brought so much to USD — not just on the basketball court — but academically. They are all stellar and to have that diversity was so great for our team.” 

Brossman shared what she will miss the most about playing basketball at USD.

“I’ll miss the team,” Brossmann said. “The celebration upon positivity, our teammates celebrate like crazy when we score. The team is there and we all support each other and it was so fun to play with them and to play for each other.” 

The team had just one goal in mind when competing for the WCC Tournament.

“Cutting down nets,” Brossman and Pollock said. “We talk about it every year but our goal this year was being in the top three, and now we’re No. 2. We’re going to the semi-finals and it’s now just one step at a time.” 

The 2020 season did not end the way the Toreros had hoped. Although, the team won 20 games, after winning just nine last season. USD was picked to finish eighth in the WCC standings and ended up finishing in second place. The Toreros wait to find out if they will advance the NCAA Tournament.