Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
9-3 (1-0MW)
New Mexico
4-8 (0-1MW)
Bulldogs Top New Mexico, 71-65, in MW Opener
12/31/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
By Josh Mitchell
jomitchell@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
FRESNO, Calif. - Fresno State continued its win streak into the conference season, extending it to five as the team defeated New Mexico in the Mountain West opener, 71-65, Wednesday afternoon at the Save Mart Center.
Senior forward Alex Sheedy paced the Bulldogs (9-3, 1-0 MW) with 16 points, while New Mexico (4-8, 0-1 MW) was led by Antiesha Brown, who poured in a game-high 19.
Back and forth during the early going, Fresno State held a one-point lead with 11:56 on the clock after a 3-pointer from Lobo Byrce Owens answered a 3 from Sheedy. Two points each from junior guard Shauqunna Collins and redshirt freshman Bego Faz Davalos were followed by a triple from senior guard Robin Draper. After a timeout was called by the Lobos, back-to-back steals turned into easy layups for senior guard Raven Fox as the lead continued to grow.
New Mexico's Jayd Bovero cut the deficit 10, but the Bulldog kept coming. Junior forward Toni Smith accounted for six points during the next three minutes as Fresno State's lead ballooned to 16 at 31-15.
Senior guard Alex Furr gave the `Dogs their largest lead of the half as she dropped a 3-pointer with 1:04 remaining in half. After New Mexico got two back, Faz Davalos pushed it back to 19 as Fresno State took a 36-17 lead in the break after shooting 14-of-26 (53.8 percent) and holding the Lobos to 7-of-22 (31.8 percent) from the field.
Despite facing a large deficit, New Mexico clawed its way back into the game during the second half as they hit 18-of-33 from the field and forced 10 turnovers for 12 points during the final 20 minutes. The Lobos managed to get the lead down to 11 on multiple occasions during the first seven minutes of the half, but leading by 12 with 12:28 on the clock Fox, Collins and Smith accounted for 10 points during a 10-3 three-and-a-half minute spurt to make it a 62-43 game with 8:12 left.
The Lobos wouldn't go away though as they put together a 9-0 run with three consecutive 3's, two coming from Cherise Beynon, who finished the day with 13 points. The Bulldogs were able to maintain a 10-plus point lead during the next three-plus minutes, but six consecutive points by the Lobos brought their deficit to six with 50 seconds remaining, but that's as close as they would get as the Bulldogs held on for the 71-65 win.
The win was Fresno State fourth in a row over New Mexico and its largest victory over the Lobos since defeating them 66-60 on Jan. 25, 1996 in Fresno.
Despite being outscored by 13 in the second half, the Bulldogs were still very efficient from the field, connecting at a 58.3 percent clip (14-of-24) and finished the game hitting 28-of-50 (56.0 percent) overall. The hot shooting came from a balanced effort from the `Dogs as they had seven players score seven or more points. The group accounted for all but two of the team's points. Aside from Sheedy, Collins was the only other Fresno State player in double figures as she scored 12 points while adding five assists and three rebounds.
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