When Jené Morris joined the San Diego State women’s basketball team, it was in a rebuilding phase. SDSU had yet to assert itself as a threat in the Mountain West Conference — much less the national scene — but that soon changed.
The term “scrappy” may come across as condescending, but it’s hard to avoid the adjective when talking about the 11-seeded San Diego State women’s basketball team’s run in this year’s NCAA Tournament.
Beth Burns is one of the most respected and decorated coaches in women’s college basketball today. In her time at San Diego State and Ohio State, she has led her teams to more than a few conference titles, a handful of NCAA Tournament victories and even a WNIT Championship.
The Aztecs will try to repeat last season's win against Texas
Just seconds after the field of 65 was announced and the 11-seeded San Diego State women’s basketball team found out it would be matched up against nationally ranked, 6-seeded Texas, head coach Beth Burns addressed her team, as well as the rest of the crowd at SDSU’s selection party on Monday.
LAS VEGAS — With four minutes left in regulation of the Mountain West Conference Tournament Championship game, the San Diego State women’s basketball team trailed Utah by eight points. At that moment, senior guard Quenese Davis huddled her team together on the court and put things into perspective.
Riding a three-game winning streak and boasting arguably the most talented roster in the league, the San Diego State women’s basketball team is poised for another run to the championship game of the Mountain West Conference Tournament in Las Vegas this week.
There are a number of memories that the three seniors on the San Diego State women’s basketball team have had during their time on Montezuma Mesa. Senior guards Kim Spinardi, Jené Morris and Quenese Davis all played a role in leading SDSU to an undefeated record at home last season, followed by a share of the Mountain West Conference regular season title and even a trip to the NCAA Tournament, where the Aztecs defeated DePaul in the first round.
Jessika Bradley, Paris Johnson and Allison Duffy have more than just a connection on the court for the San Diego State women’s basketball team. The three post players have a friendship off the court that has played a big role in their success together. And it has been the hard times that have helped them relate to each other the most.
It was only appropriate that Paris Johnson had the ball in her arms in the deciding play of the game. The San Diego State women’s basketball team’s junior center dominated the paint with a game-high 24 points on 9-of-14 shooting and recorded a team-high nine rebounds. But her most important play came with fewer than five seconds left when she grabbed a defensive board to clinch the 73-71 victory for SDSU (16-10, 8-6 in Mountain West Conference play) against BYU last night at Viejas Arena.
It is a decision that Jessika Bradley still considers to this day. After four years at Sacramento High, Bradley chose to attend Baylor to play women’s basketball. But her time for the Lady Bears was short. After two seasons, Bradley transferred to San Diego State.
With last week’s convincing victory against conference-leading and then-No. 23 TCU, it appeared the San Diego State women’s basketball team was playing up to its potential and had its season back on track as the Mountain West Conference tournament approaches.
That notion took a hit on Sunday when SDSU fell 73-55 at Utah. The loss marks the Aztecs’ fourth loss in five games and third consecutive road defeat.
Tuesday’s contest against TCU was a make-or-break game for the San Diego State women’s basketball team. The stakes were high. A loss to the Lady Frogs would have dropped SDSU to .500 in Mountain West Conference play and likely would have affected how the Aztecs fared in the remaining four games. But if SDSU defeated TCU, it would be a catalyst for the Aztecs finishing conference play on a high note and preparing themselves for the MWC Tournament.
The San Diego State women's basketball team was backed into the proverbial corner last night when it faced off against No. 23 TCU. SDSU was riding a three-game Mountain West Conference losing streak which included its first home conference loss since 2008 and two losses to middle-of-the-road MWC teams.
All the frustration that had built up throughout the past two weeks was unleashed last night when the Aztecs demolished the nationally-ranked Lady Frogs, 84-61.
After suffering consecutive losses, the San Diego State women’s basketball team traveled to Las Vegas in search of a confidence-boosting win against UNLV. Unfortunately for SDSU, the Aztecs got just the opposite: a hard-fought, heartbreaking loss — their third in a row.
Since joining the Mountain West Conference in 1999, the San Diego State women’s basketball team has yet to win a game in Laramie, Wyo. SDSU’s struggle against Wyoming goes further back though, the last time the Aztecs won in Laramie was a 54-48 victory on Jan. 16, 1997.
With first conference home loss since 2008, SDSU falls from its first-place spot
Coming into Saturday’s home game against New Mexico, the San Diego State women’s basketball team had its route to a Mountain West Conference championship all planned out. Tied for first place and with three home games remaining against the league’s three other contenders, the chances of a regular-season conference title for SDSU seemed excellent.
Not even a broken-down charter bus could slow down the San Diego State women’s basketball team last night in Colorado Springs, Colo. On the way to the game at Clune Arena against Air Force, SDSU found itself immobilized on the side of the road for a solid 20 minutes. While that could have thrown the Aztecs off their rhythm, they took it all in stride, eventually making it to the game and cruising to a 68-48 victory against the Falcons.
SDSU defends tournament title by defeating Wake Forest and Tigers
In last year’s San Diego Surf ‘N Slam tournament, the San Diego State women’s basketball team made a national statement by defeating then-No. 4 Texas. In the 2009 Surf ‘N Slam, which concluded yesterday at Viejas Arena, SDSU made a different statement.
The crowd in Viejas Arena was going crazy. Senior guard Jené Morris had just connected on a 3-pointer to give the San Diego State women’s basketball team the 61-60 lead with less than a minute remaining in overtime. But that excitement quickly turned into disappointment when sophomore guard Jazmine Jackson scored with .02 seconds left to give Pepperdine the 62-61 victory against SDSU on Tuesday night.
When a team stays undefeated at home throughout an entire season, most people would assume the team’s home-court advantage includes packed stands and thousands of screaming fans. But for the San Diego State women’s basketball team, which went 14-0 at home in the regular season last year, the crowd has been all but irrelevant.
Jessika Bradley makes the San Diego State women’s basketball team even better than it was last season. SDSU had a great run, but was outmatched by Stanford’s size in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The addition of Bradley helps in that area and also takes pressure off junior center Paris Johnson.
Johnson, Davis and Morris combine for 55 points in the Aztecs' victory in Riverside
Most coaches will say it’s important to have a balanced offensive attack, spreading the ball around and getting all the players on the court involved. But sometimes letting the dominant players take charge works just as well.
Since its loss to Stanford in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last March, it seemed that all news surrounding the San Diego State women’s basketball team was positive.
Before heading to the Virgin Islands to compete in the 2009 U.S Virgin Islands Paradise Jam last Thursday the San Diego State women’s basketball team received good news.
SDSU achieved its first top-25 national ranking in 14 years with a No. 23 ranking in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll.
Despite sloppy offensive play, Aztecs win big over Pac-10 opponent
There were 51 turnovers, a total of 72 missed field goals and a combined free-throw percentage of 63.3. As Arizona women’s basketball head coach Niya Butts put it, “That was pretty ugly.”
Tuesday night’s San Diego State women’s basketball game seemingly had it all. There was the home-opener aspect — SDSU playing its first game at Viejas Arena this season. Then there was the banner-raising, pre-game ceremony — with the Aztecs hanging their 2009 Mountain West Conference Co-Champions banner. And then, of course, there was the crosstown rival on the opposite end of the court.
More than 20 turnovers could easily have affected the outcome of the San Diego State women’s basketball team’s season opener.
But luckily for SDSU, it didn’t.
The atmosphere was electric. More than 3,600 fans were in attendance. Ten players were on the court. And two teams were getting ready to face off in the first round of the NCAA tournament. But one player couldn’t be out there with her team against DePaul. Allison Duffy.
The San Diego State women’s basketball team is coming off arguably its greatest season in program history.
SDSU went a perfect 14-0 at home in the regular season, tied for the Mountain West Conference regular season title, advanced to the final round of the MWC Tournament and even advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament by upsetting DePaul on its home court in San Diego.
What’s even more notable is that on paper, this year the Aztecs are going to be even better — much better.
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