Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Nevada
Women's Basketball Downed by Nevada 72-54
2/10/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Feb. 10, 2002
RENO, Nev. - Kate Smith lived up to her billing as one of the top players in the conference with a 21-point, nine-rebound peformance in Nevada's 72-54 victory over Fresno State before 1,588 at the Lawlor Events Center. The loss is the Bulldogs' fifth in a row, the longest streak of the season.
Helped in large part by Smith's effort, Nevada (8-13, 5-7 WAC) was able to pile up the most points it has scored in a game since Jan. 17 against UTEP, when it had 77. The Wolf Pack entered the contest eighth in the conference in scoring offense at 60.0 per game.
Both teams started the game stuttering offensively. Nevada made only three of its first 15 shots while the Bulldogs (8-14, 3-9 WAC) committed eight turnovers in the first 11 minutes. But both eventually settled in and went on 7-0 runs at different points of the opening stanza, and at the 7:50 mark, the Wolf Pack held a narrow 20-17 lead.
After a timeout with just under eight minutes to go, Nevada heated things up, going on a 19-9 run the remainder of the half to take a 39-26 lead into the locker room. Smith was a thorn in the side of Fresno State during the first 20 minutes, notching 13 points and grabbing five rebounds. After the frigid start, Nevada helped its cause tremendously by hitting 13 of its last 20 field goal attempts.
Fresno State could never get back into the contest in the second half. The Bulldogs trimmed the lead to 10 with 10:14 left, but the Wolf Pack immediately ran off six points in a row to grab a 56-40 advantage with just over nine minutes remaining. Fresno State never got closer than 11 the rest of the way.
Omelogo Udeze led the Bulldogs with 14 points while Lindsay Logan scored 12. Fresno State hurt itself with 22 turnovers and just 37 percent field goal shooting.
In addition to Smith's big night, Ashley Bastian had 18 points and Laura Ingham dished out 10 assists.
Fresno State's three-game WAC road trip continues Thursday against UTEP at 5 p.m.
