WBB Review: Different Game, Same Result For Struggling Aggies

RENO – Despite late-game theatrics from Jamisyn Heaton, Mia Tarver and CJ Latta, Utah State didn’t have enough to complete the comeback effort and overcome a 15-point deficit. Nevada threw everything it could at the Aggies, and it needed just about all of it – the Wolf Pack had five players in double digits and still only escaped with a nine-point victory on their home floor. 

At this point, it seems like the Aggies enjoy making their job harder. They got themselves down by as many as 15, only to storm back and make it a one-point game in the waning moments. That's a common story for this team, though, and they again couldn’t pull off the comeback, falling to 1-15 overall and 0-4 in the Mountain West with a 78-69 loss to Nevada. The grievance head coach Wes Brooks shared days earlier after the loss to Boise State is directly applicable here.

“If we take that out, if we don’t give up those runs, we win the game tonight.”

For most of the first half, the Aggies played in lockstep with the Wolf Pack. But, Nevada started the third quarter with seven unanswered points to cap off an 11-0 run spanning back to the end of the second quarter, in a sequence that ultimately defined the game. Cheyenne Stubbs broke up the Nevada run with a slick step-back three, but the Aggies couldn’t make up any distance. The teams traded buckets, then Victoria Davis picked up a foul on a layup and completed a three-point play to put the finishing touches on a 16-5 stretch. With 6:50 remaining in the third quarter, Nevada enjoyed a hearty 15-point lead.

On the verge of careening out of control, Heaton reengaged with five points in 15 seconds of play to drag Utah State back from the brink. First, she scored through contact, handing Lexie Givens a foul and hitting a free throw in the process, then on the next play, she hit another layup, biting off a third of Nevada’s lead in the blink of an eye.

Izzy Sullivan hit a layup to add two more points to the Wolf Pack advantage, but Tarver kept the Aggies in place. Unable to get anything done from the field, she went to the line. First, she drew a foul on Olivia Poulivaati and converted one of two. Then she drew another foul, this one on Dymonique Maxie, and rattled in both. She drove and picked up another foul not long after, finally getting the shot to drop along with the contact, and finished off a three-point play courtesy of Givens. In just a minute and two seconds of basketball, Tarver tallied up six points and handed out three fouls. She had single-handedly orchestrated a 6-0 run and cut the Aggie deficit in half, from 12 to 6.

Then it was Latta’s turn. She hit a jumper, Tarver picked up a steal, and Latta converted on a layup to make it a two-point game. The Wolf Pack weathered the storm with a timeout and five quick points, but Heaton hit a layup to close the quarter on a high note for Utah State.

To open the fourth, Nevada added four more points to regain a nine-point lead, but Tarver led the team on one last push. She hit a three-pointer to cut it to six, then a jumper to make it a four-point game. Latta followed that up by hitting a three to get the Aggies within a point. In about 13 minutes of play, the Aggies had all but erased a 15-point deficit and had a chance to make a play for the lead. But, after scoring eight unanswered points, they ran out of gas. Utah State hit only one more shot the rest of the way, a layup from Latta. Finally, the buzzer let the Wolf Pack off the hook and staved off any remaining hope of an Aggie comeback, but not before Utah State forced Nevada to play to the final minute in what had once looked like an apparent blowout.

Givens proved to be a handful and the Utah State frontcourt, after commendable efforts against Allyson Fertig and Abby Muse, struggled to slow her down. The frontcourt, which was already short-staffed with Taliyah Logwood on the bench with a sprained ankle, got into foul trouble again as Heaton fouled out and Gracie Johnson picked up four. Givens took advantage and grabbed team-highs in points and rebounds, recording 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, 10 rebounds, an assist, two blocks and two steals. The Aggies also let Audrey Roden and Davis run wild and each had 14 points, while Imbie Jones and Sullivan each added 12. 

Tarver did everything she could to lift the Aggies past Nevada, but while notching 19 points wasn’t quite enough to pull off a victory, it was enough for a new season high. During her late game surge, she went off for 11 points, going 3 of 6 from the field, 1 of 2 from deep and 4 of 5 from the line in the second half alone. She also added four rebounds, an assist and two steals.

Heaton and Latta were also strong down the stretch, with Heaton adding seven points in the second half and Latta chipping in nine. Heaton finished with 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting, two rebounds, an assist and a steal. Latta had 12 points, four assists and three steals.

Stubbs had a quiet night for her standards, though she still contributed offensively. Unlike Tarver, Heaton and Latta, she struggled in the second half, netting just three of her nine points in the last two frames. She had a great game on the glass to help make up for her lull in scoring and had six rebounds and an assist. Johnson had six points and six rebounds. Elise Livingston had three points and two assists and was the only Aggie with playing time that didn’t pick up a foul. Isabella Tanedo had four points on four attempts, Denae Skelton had three points on three attempts (all of them from deep), and Sophie Sene had two points on one attempt and had three rebounds and two assists.

For its next matchup, Utah State stays on the road to play the 11-6 Fresno State Bulldogs, who just beat Boise State, 68-62.