San Diego State’s women’s basketball team tied a record Sunday afternoon.
Now they want a title.
The Aztecs overcame McNeese’s pressure defense with some long-range shots and were perfect from the foul line for a second straight game at USD’s Jenny Craig Pavilion to defeat the Cowgirls 56-41 and land a spot in the Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament quarterfinals.
San Diego State (27-5) will play at Kansas (21-13) on Thursday at a time to be determined.
The Aztecs tied their single-season record for wins Sunday against an aggressive 29-6 McNeese team that forced 20 turnovers and had nine steals. The Cowgirls entered the game forcing an average of 24 turnovers a game while averaging 15 turnovers.
“McNeese needs turnovers to win,” said San Diego State head coach Stacie Terry-Hutson. “I was most impressed that we didn’t have live-ball turnovers that led to transition points. Their trap defense also caused us some problems.”
McNeese scored only nine points off turnovers. And midway through the second quarter, the Aztecs started hitting open shots in the corners when the Cowgirls’ defenders took away the inside.
Sharpshooters Naomi Panganiban and Natalia Martinez each hit a pair of 3s from opposite baseline corners in the second quarter. Bailey Barnhard opened the second half with seven quick points during a 34-20 run that put the neutral-floor hosts safely in front.
“Those corner 3s that separated us were huge,” said Terry-Hutson. “Once we started finding the open, hot shooter on the wing, the game changed.”
Barnhard (Del Norte High School) led the Aztecs with 11 points. She also had five rebounds, two assists, two steals and a blocked shot. Panganiban finished with 10 points. Martinez, who was 3-for-4 from 3-point range, Nala Williams and Kaelyn Hamilton all had nine points. Williams also had five rebounds and five assists.
The Aztecs were 8-for-24 from 3-point range while McNeese was 1-for-10. The Aztecs were also 12-for-12 from the foul line and hit 25 straight free throws in their two home games at the Slim Gym.
In addition to her offensive efforts, Barnhard also spent most of the game being the primary defender against Dakota Howard, McNeese’s leading scorer and the freshman of the year in the Southland Conference.
“It was more of a team effort, a crowd-the-paint mentality,” said Barnhard. “I always had someone helping to the outside.”
When asked about tying the San Diego State record for single-season wins, Terry-Hutson responded: “Twenty-seven and counting. This team is excited to keep playing.”
The Aztecs next trip in the WBIT will be a bit farther than an 11-mile bus ride west on Interstate 8 to USD. The fourth-seeded Aztecs will travel to Lawrence, Kansas, to play the region’s second-seeded Jayhawks, who defeated Rice 62-55 Sunday.