Gonzaga WBB Falls 92-91 to Portland in Tight, Overtime Affair
The final score certainly doesn’t do an accurate job of depicting how this game unfolded. A physical contest between Gonzaga women’s basketball (22-9, 14-4) and Portland (17-13, 11-7), filled with fouls and turnovers, led to the Pilots edging out a 92-91 overtime victory at home, denying the Bulldogs a share of the WCC regular-season title.
Much like UP has done all season, it pressed, trapped, and was as opportunistic as possible on the Zags to limit attempts from beyond the arc and also keep them from the restricted area. Entering play Saturday as the second-best three-point shooting team in the country, GU only connected on a season-low two tries from deep, even while playing five periods. On the other side, Portland hit 13 threes of its own – several of the clutch variety – and forced 28 turnovers to gut out a narrow win.
That final turnover tally would be the highest Gonzaga has committed all season, and they happened in all shapes and sizes on Saturday. Inbounding the ball was an issue early as guards weren’t given much space, leading to forced and errant passes. When the ball did get brought up the floor, traps were sent that rushed swing passes, and the Pilots jumped into passing lanes. Eventually, the Zags' frustration grew, yielding self-inflicted wounds such as turnovers and offensive fouls that extended scoring droughts, such as a six-minute stretch during an eight-turnover second period.
