PORTLAND, Ore. - Saint Mary's overcame a 14-point first half deficit against one of the top teams in the West Coast Conference but finished the game just 1-of-11 to fall 66-58 in The Chiles Center. Head coach
Jeff Cammon and his squad showed massive amounts of heart in the second half to tie the game up at 54 late in the fourth quarter with defensive grit and tenacity.
Emily Foy caught fire from beyond the arc with a pair of three pointers in the fourth to help tie the game but the Gaels went cold in the final two and a half minutes.
It was a low scoring, balanced attack for the Gaels as
Emily Foy led the way with 13 points off the bench.
Maia Jones eclipsed double digits for the third straight game finishing with eleven points on 5-of-13 shooting. Saint Mary's did most of their damage inside outscoring Portland 24-9 in the paint. Defensively, the Gaels held the best scoring offense in the conference to just 39% shooting and 17% from three-point range. Portland only scored 66 total points after coming into the game averaging nearly 80 points to lead the WCC.
FIRST HALF SMC 24-33 PU
Portland's Maisie Burnham took advantage of the Gaels zone defense and started the game 3-3 from beyond the arc to jump out to an early 9-2 lead. After a quick timeout to stop the bleeding, Saint Mary's settled in and ended up cutting the deficit to single digits by the end of the first. Switching to man out of the first media timeout helped force some Portland turnovers as layups from
Jada Hunter and
Zeryhia Aokuso helped cut the deficit to nine after the opening ten minutes. The ball movement offensively was clean and precise for the Gaels but eight first quarter turnovers would put them behind the ball early.
In typical fashion, Saint Mary's started to settle down and find their footing first on the defensive side of the ball. Portland would turn the ball over five times in the second quarter allowing the Gaels to chip into their lead.
Maia Jones started to lead the charge offensively as she started the second quarter on a solo 9-0 scoring run including a corner three ball to cut the deficit down to seven. Jones accounted for nine of the team's 15 points in the second quarter as they trailed by nine at the half.
Cammon and his staff sprinkled in a little 1-3-1 zone defense that caused problems for the Pilots but more importantly, the Gaels were positive on the glass in the second quarter, outrebounding Portland 17-16 in the first half. They also held Portland's dynamic offense to just 36% shooting and 17% from three in the quarter to take plenty of momentum into the second half.
FINAL SMC 58-66 PU
The pace would slow down for both sides to start the third quarter as both coaches appeared to be trying to solve each other defensively. That seemed to favor both teams though as they put together nearly identical quarters, finishing 8-of-15 from the field. The Gaels did go on an 8-0 run early in the quarter to cut the deficit to as little as five points but Portland had an answer for every Gaels run, including a buzzer beater jumper to push their lead back to eight. The third quarter was the best shooting quarter of the game for both teams as Saint Mary's found themselves down eight heading to the fourth.
The fourth quarter would turn into a signature one for Saint Mary's as their stifling defense got them back in the game and sparked an offensive flurry led by shooting guard
Emily Foy. After going down by ten with a layup on Portland's first possession of the quarter, Saint Mary's would respond with a 10-0 run that featured a pair of three pointers from Foy to eventually tie the game at 54, the first tie of the game since the opening tip.
Foy finished with eight points in the fourth quarter. After her jumper at the 6:37 mark to make it a one-point game, the game would take a turn for the worse. The Gaels went a combined 1-for-11 over the final five and a half minutes of regulation. They defended and rebounded well but saw several good jumpers in the lane rim out, not allowing them to take their first lead of the game.
Portland was not much better as they were just 3-of-12 in the fourth, but were able to get to the line and ice the game with eight made free throws in the final ten minutes. The Gaels were just waiting for the lid to come off the basket with defensive stop after defensive stop but it never did. Aokuso hit a jumper in the lane to make it 58-60 with 2:32 to play but they went on to miss their next four shot attempts.
Saint Mary's finished the night holding Portland to just 39% shooting and 17% from three, their lowest mark from beyond the arc since December 1st. Despite the numerous positives to take away against arguably their best opponent of the season, the Gaels suffered their fourth conference defeat and now fall to fourth place in the standings at 7-4.
Edie Clarke got her sixth start of the season and was productive all night, finishing with eight points and three boards.
Maia Jones was the lone double digit scorer in the starting lineup for the Gaels while
Emily Foy led the team with 13 points off the bench. Jones also recorded a career high six steals as the Gaels forced 16 turnovers on the night.
Kennedy Johnson and
Zeryhia Aokuso combined for 15 on the night and Johnson finished with eight rebounds as she continues to lead the team with over five a game.
LOOKING AHEAD
Saint Mary's now sits at 11-9 overall and 7-4 in WCC play after their 58-66 road defeat to Portland. The Gaels will remain in the Pacific Northwest to take on Oregon State on Saturday. Tip-off is slated for 2:00 PM and you can stream the game live on ESPN+.
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