Consider the Boise State Broncos women's basketball team a rarity.
Despite hitting only 4 of 22 from the field in the second half, the Broncos picked up a victory in the opening round of the Mountain West tournament, defeating the Nevada Wolf Pack 54-48.
Free throws carried Boise State to victory, where the Broncos hit 16 of 22 from the charity stripe in the second half and 21 of 29 for the game.
Cold shooting was not contained to the Boise State side. The Broncos actually ended up better at 32.7 percent to Nevada's 31.6. The Wolf Pack dipped this low thanks to a 3 of 15 performance in the fourth quarter.
Boise State (18-14), playing again without an injured Mya Hansen, was led by 14 points from Tatum Thompson. The junior was 4 of 14 from the field but made six of nine at the free throw line. Thompson finished with seven rebounds and senior Abby Muse led the Broncos with nine.
Muse and junior Natalie Pasco (3 of 11 from the field) each scored eight points.
Lexie Givens led the Wolf Pack (11-21) with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
The Broncos lost the rebound battle, 40 to 36, but committed only 12 turnovers to Nevada's 17.
The victory advances Boise State to the quarterfinals to face the top seed UNLV Lady Rebels. Boise State lost both meetings with UNLV this season, falling by four points in Boise and 30 in Las Vegas. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. (MT) on Monday (3/10).
First half: Close from the start
Both teams struggled out of the gate. Turnovers and early foul trouble highlighted those first five minutes. The Wolf Pack took nearly two minutes to score, and Boise State took longer, with the Broncos not scoring until 5:08 left in the first quarter on a bucket by Pasco.
The score was tied at two with 4:46 left but Nevada picked up the pace in the last part of the quarter. A three-pointer by Dymonique Maxie gave the Wolf pack a 14-7 lead.
Boise State was only 2 of 12 from the floor and committed five turnovers in the quarter.
Nevada kept the ball rolling and built their largest lead early in the second quarter, leading 19-11 with 8:43 left. The Broncos, though, found their defensive intensity, keyed by reserves Libby Hutton, Jayda Clark, and Milly Sharp.
Reinserting Muse into the game with two fouls helped, too. Muse scored six points, part of a 17-5 run by Boise State. During this stretch, Hutton had three assists and Clark scored five points.
The Broncos were much better in the second quarter, shooting 10 of 15 from the field and committing only one turnover to take a 30-28 lead at halftime.
Thompson had seven first-half points, with Muse scoring six and Clark five.
Second half: Free throws be thy name
The third quarter was a repeat of the first, only much worse. This time around, it took nearly three minutes for either team to score. Boise State laid a goose egg in the field goal department, tossing up an impressive 0 for 14. Their only four points in the quarter came at the charity stripe.
Nevada was slightly better, scoring ten points overall to take a 38-34 lead entering the final frame.
The Broncos finally made their first field goal of the second half on a basket by Pasco with 7:49 remaining to cut the deficit to one. The two teams continued to struggle and Clark brought the score even at 42 with two free throws and 6:29 on the clock.
Nevada built out the lead to four with two straight baskets by Givens. Foul trouble by the Wolf Pack kept the Broncos in the game. Boise State managed to snag only their second lead of the second half with two free throws by Thompson with just under two minutes to play.
Givens responded with two free throws of her own to give the Wolf Pack the lead. Thompson answered with a jumper, giving Boise State a lead they would not relinquish the final 1:20 of the game.
Clark and Dani Bayes each added seven points for the Broncos. Bayes, who missed all eight of her field goal attempts, scored all her points from the free throw line.
Audrey Roden finished with nine points and six rebounds for the Wolf Pack.
Boise State's effort on the defensive end resulted in 10 blocked shots (three by Thompson) and six steals, plus multiple shot clock violations and forced errant passes by the Wolf Pack.
Other first round results
In the second game of the first round, seventh seed Air Force (18-13) held off a late push from Utah State to pick up a 66-59 victory. The Falcons will face second seed Wyoming on Monday.
The nightcap between San Jose State and Fresno State was just underway as of this writing, with the winner set to take on Colorado State.
More on Boise State women's basketball 2024-25
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