No. 11 Arizona women beat Washington State 60-44
March 4, 2021 Updated Sat., March 13, 2021 at 7:43 p.m.
Arizona guard Aari McDonald (2) shoots as Washington State guard Charlisse Leger-Walker (5) defends during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in the second round of the Pac-12 women's tournament Thursday, March 4, 2021, in Las Vegas. (Associated Press)
LAS VEGAS — Trinity Baptiste had 13 of her 17 points in the first half, and No. 11 Arizona beat Washington State 60-44 in the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 tournament on Thursday night.
Arizona will face the winner of 11th-seed Washington and No. 3 seed and ninth-ranked UCLA in the semifinals on Friday.
The second-seeded Wildcats (16-4) pulled away with an 11-0 run in the third quarter capped at 42-24 on Aari McDonald’s layup with 1:42 left. Washington State got the deficit no closer than 14 the rest of the way.
The No. 7 seed Cougars (12-11) had 20 of their 26 turnovers in the first half but only trailed 29-21 at the break.
Baptiste led the defensive pressure with six of Arizona’s 16 steals and made 8 of 11 shots from the field. Aari McDonald added 13 points, nine assists and five rebounds.
McDonald reached her 86th game in a row scoring in double digits when she scored on a layup with 7:03 left in the fourth quarter.
Cate Reese added 10 points for Arizona, which held Washington State to five points in the first and third quarters.
Charlisse Leger-Walker had 12 points and Krystal Leger-Walker scored 10 for the Cougars. Bella Murekatete had 10 rebounds for Washington State, which shot 26% for the game.
Washington State finds itself on the NCAA Tournament bubble after going 3-6 against ranked opponents, including a pair of wins against No. 9 UCLA.
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