SEATTLE — For most of the first half, a scrappy and very determined Portland State squad hung with a taller, quicker team from Texas A&M in a first-round game of the NCAA Division I women’s basketball tournament.
But in the second half, that size and speed advantage took its toll as the Aggies ran away from Portland State for an 84-53 victory Saturday night at Bank of America Arena.
“I think (the Aggies’) trainer and manager are more athletic than us,” joked Portland State coach Sherri Murrell afterward. “And I even looked, and our mascot was shorter than their mascot.”
Even in defeat, the Vikings got a solid game from starting guard Eryn Jones, a sophomore from Lynnwood’s Meadowdale High School. Jones scored 15 points, matching backcourt mate Claire Faucher for team-high honors, while shooting 5-for-12 from the field, including 3-for-4 from the 3-point stripe.
“I just knew that we could play with this team,” said Jones, who added two rebounds and a steal. “And I was proud of us for coming out so hard and not being intimidated.”
Texas A&M opened the game with eight consecutive points, but Portland State finally got untracked and whittled away at the deficit. The game was tied twice midway through the first half, and it was Jones who gave the Vikings their only lead of the game, 28-27, with a fast-break jump shot from left of the key late in the period.
Jones added a 3-pointer moments later to make the score 31-31, but from there Texas A&M closed the half with eight unanswered points. Then, after spotting Portland State the first three points of the second half, the Aggies went on an 18-3 scoring run over the next seven minutes for a 57-37 lead.
The Vikings rallied briefly, managing a brief 9-2 run of their own, but from there the Aggies took the game in hand, running off 19 straight points in a five-minute span.
The largest lead was 78-46 with just over six minutes remaining.
“We gave them everything we had, but unfortunately it was just in one half,” Murrell said. “But our young ladies had absolutely no fear in their eyes, and that was the No. 1 thing. Go out there and don’t be tentative.”
Also seeing playing time for the Vikings was backup guard Karley Lampman, a freshman from Snohomish, who was 1-for-6 from the field for two points in 10 minutes.
The loss ended the season for Portland State, which was making its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament. The Vikings, who earned their tourney berth by winning the Big Sky Conference tournament, ended up with an 18-15 record.
“There are a lot of people who didn’t know about Portland State (earlier this season),” Murrell said, “but they know about us now.”
Texas A&M, the region’s No. 2 seed with a 25-7 record coming into the game, was led by the 23 points of backup center Danielle Adams, with starting guard Tanisha Smith adding 17 and starting forward Adaora Elonu chipping in 15.
The Aggies, who finished tied for fourth in the Big 12 Conference but won the league tournament, also finished with a decisive 48-32 rebound margin and had a 52-16 margin on points in the paint.
Gonzaga 82, North Carolina 76
SEATTLE — Scoreless for 31 minutes, Tiffanie Shives had 14 of her 16 points in a crucial five-minute stretch of the second half to help the seventh-seeded Bulldogs beat the No. 10 seed Tar Heels.
Trailing 58-56, Shives broke a five-minute scoring drought for the Bulldogs with a baseline jumper with 8:59 left. That was just the start for the senior. She then hit four consecutive 3-pointers, scoring 14 of the Bulldogs 16 points as they surged into the lead.
North Carolina used its superior size on the interior to stay close, pulling within 72-71 with 3:51 to go, but the Bulldogs closed on an 10-5 run. They play No. 2 seed Texas A&M in Monday’s second-round.
Katelan Redmon led Gonzaga (28-4) with 18 points. Chay Shegog led the Tar Heels (19-12) with 19 points on 9 of 10 shooting.
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