Gonzaga women face key game against BYU
No disrespect to Gonzaga’s other West Coast Conference rivals, but the BYU rivalry is special.
It’s even more special when first place is on the line, the way will be Thursday night at the McCarthey Athletic Center.
Technically, the Bulldogs (17-4 overall, 8-2 in the WCC) will still have a share of first place even if they lose to BYU (13-8 and 7-3).
But that’s not the point.
“You’ve got to do your job at home,” said GU coach Lisa Fortier, who is 3-2 against the Cougars and will face them again in Provo, Utah, in the regular-season finale on Feb. 25.
Besides chasing a WCC regular-season title, GU also needs a quality win to boost its RPI should the Zags fail to earn an automatic NCAA berth.
The Zags are 95th – they actually dropped seven spots despite beating San Diego and Pepperdine last week – and probably need to win out to have a shot at an at-large berth.
BYU (103rd in RPI) is in the same boat after an overtime loss last weekend at Loyola Marymount.
“When we found out they had lost we were pretty excited,” GU forward Kiara Kudron said. “We’ve had some good practices.”
That’s a good thing, as BYU features a talented, physical lineup that includes point guard Cassie Broadhead, the WCC’s leading scorer at 19.1 points a game.
“It starts and ends with her,” said Fortier, who counters with the league’s No. 2 scorer in Jill Barta (17.8)
Makenzi Pulsipher averages 13.4 points a game while forward Kalani Purcell also averages a double-double with 12.1 ppg and 10.7 rpg).
“Our bigs have got to find a way to get 20-plus rebounds,” Kudron said. “They’re a pretty good rebounding team, and they’re going to put some bodies on us.”
On the other hand, GU is coming off a record-tying 3-point shooting game against Pepperdine. After watching the Zags drain 15 from long range, the Cougars might consider going with a man defense.
“Now they have to think about it,” Fortier said.