Bronco Women Hold Off Hawai'i 77-73

The Bronco women's basketball team exploded for a 16-point halftime lead, then had to battle off a determined Hawai'i team for a huge win on the road 77-73.

Tasha Harris and Jenna Galassi combined for 45 points to lead Boise State over Hawaii 77-73 in a critical Western Athletic Conference game in Honolulu.  Coach Gordy Presnell’s team entered the locker room at halftime with a 16-point lead but had to hold on down the stretch to preserve the win, Boise State’s fourth in a row.

Galassi led the first-half onslaught with 19 points on a perfect nine-for-nine shooting.  The Broncos shot 18-34 as a team (52.9%) while holding the Rainbow Wahine to just 33.3%.

The second half was a reversal with the Wahine slowly chipping away at the Broncos until they narrowed the Bronco lead to two points with 8:13 left.  The Bronco team dug down deep and went on an 8-2 run featuring back-to-back three-pointers by Jackie Lee and Jessica Thompson to make the score 64-56. 

Hawai’i cut the margin to three points twice in the final minute.  Tanya Smith’s short jumper in the key made it 74-71 with 15 seconds to play.  Harris was quickly fouled but calmly hit both free throws.  Smith’s putback of a missed shot cut the lead to 76-73, but her ensuing free throw missed.  Ja’Lara Walker skied high for the rebound and her free throw provided the final margin.

Harris has now scored in double digits in 21 straight games, leading the Broncos in scoring for the 10^th time this season.  Tasha also had five steals in the road win.  Galassi added six rebounds, two assists and three steals for a complete game.  Lee finished with 11 points, five rebounds and a career-high seven assists.  Freshman Sierra Moeller had her best game as a Bronco with five points and a team-leading seven rebounds while Walker had three points and six boards.

Tanya Smith had an outstanding game for Hawai’i with 25 points, 17 rebounds, four blocked shots and a steal.  Megan Tinnin and Saundra Cariaga had 12 points each for the Wahine. 

Boise State is now 12-6 overall and 4-2 in the WAC while Hawai’i falls to 7-11 and 1-4.  The Broncos host the league’s #1 team, Fresno State next Monday in Taco Bell Arena.  The Lady Bulldogs are off to a 5-0 start in WAC play but are just 10-8 overall. 

Tip-off for Monday’s game is 7 p.m.

Boise State vs. Hawaii
1/24/08 7:07 PM at Honolulu, Hawaii (Stan Sheriff Center)

BOISE STATE 77, HAWAII73

BOISE STATE (12-6, 4-2 WAC)
Harris, Tasha 7-18 8-11 24;Galassi, Jenna 10-14 0-0 21; Lee, Jackie 4-9 0-0
11; Thompson, Jessica 3-100-1 8; Moeller, Sierra 2-6 1-2 5; Moore, Brittany
1-5 0-0 3; Walker, Ja'Lara0-2 3-4 3; Rima, Melissa 1-2 0-0 2; Stewart,
Amanda 0-1 0-0 0; Malone, Jamia0-2 0-0 0. Totals 28-69 12-18 77.

HAWAII (7-11, 1-4 WAC)
Smith, Tanya 12-17 1-5 25;Zagrobelna, Iwona 3-5 7-10 13; Cariaga, Saundra
4-11 3-6 12; Tinnin, Megan4-15 0-0 12; Kanekoa, Keisha 4-11 0-0 8;
Galdones, Leilani 1-2 0-0 3; Jones,Ebony 0-1 0-0 0; Liepkalne, Dita 0-4 0-0
0; Hittle, Tara 0-3 0-0 0. Totals28-69 11-21 73.

Boise State................... 43 34 -77
Hawaii........................ 27 46 - 73

3-point goals--Boise State 9-27 (Lee, Jackie 3-8; Thompson, Jessica2-4;
Harris, Tasha 2-7; Moore, Brittany 1-4; Galassi, Jenna 1-1; Malone,Jamia
0-2; Moeller, Sierra 0-1), Hawaii 6-21 (Tinnin, Megan 4-12;Galdones,
Leilani 1-1; Cariaga, Saundra 1-2; Liepkalne, Dita 0-2; Kanekoa,Keisha 0-3;
Zagrobelna, Iwona 0-1). Fouled out--Boise State-None,Hawaii-Kanekoa,
Keisha. Rebounds--Boise State 41 (Moeller, Sierra 7), Hawaii48 (Smith,
Tanya 17). Assists--Boise State 14 (Lee, Jackie 7), Hawaii 12(Kanekoa,
Keisha 6). Total fouls--Boise State 15, Hawaii 17. Technical fouls--Boise
State-Lee, Jackie, Hawaii-None. A-492