Nov. 28—ST. THOMAS, U.S. Virgin Islands — It got dicey in the final seconds, but Washington State made a late defensive stand and hung on for its first win.
The Cougs squandered a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter, but denied Miami (Ohio) on a potential game-tying shot attempt with two seconds remaining, escaping with a 71-67 victory at the Paradise Jam.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWSU (1-6) created a cushion in the fourth after guard Eleonora Villa opened the period with back-to-back 3-pointers. The RedHawks (4-3) responded with a 9-0 run later in the quarter, cutting the Cougar lead to 68-67 on Tamar Singer's 3 with 14 seconds left. After a Malia Ruud free throw put WSU up by two, Singer missed a jumper that would have sent the game into overtime, and the Cougars closed it from the foul line.
The teams traded the lead 10 times. WSU appeared in control at the half, leading 33-26, but Miami always had an answer whenever the Cougs gained separation.
Villa, a standout junior, led all players with 25 points. Sophomore guard Charlotte Abraham added 18 points for WSU, which shot 25 of 56 (44.6%) from the field and 6 of 21 (28.6%) on 3s.
Forward Ilse de Vries paced Miami with 16 points, and forward Amber Tretter had 13 points and 15 rebounds as the RedHawks shot 24 of 58 (41.4%) overall and 7 of 19 (36.8%) from deep.
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