Kennedie Shuler, Oregon State stun top-seeded Gonzaga women 63-61 in WCC Tournament semifinals

LAS VEGAS – The kindest way to say it is the Gonzaga women’s basketball got out-executed at the end.

The Zags know it, everybody at Orleans Arena saw it and there’s no reason to be more pointed.

It happened against the same team again but this one at the worst possible moment.

Somehow, though, Gonzaga had the ball with less than a second after a timeout and got a shot from Yvonne Ejim off a well-designed play. She took an inbounds pass deep, but a 6-footer ricocheted off the backboard at the buzzer as fourth-seeded Oregon State upset top-seeded Gonzaga 63-61 in a West Coast Conference tournament semifinal Monday afternoon.

Moments earlier, the Zags switched on a screen to account for shooter AJ Marotte, but Kennedie Shuler got loose inside and banked in a short shot for what would prove to be the game-winner with 0.8 seconds left.

Gonzaga (22-10) now wait to learn if it receives an invitation to another postseason tournament not named NCAA.

The finish was similar to Gonzaga’s 71-67 loss to Oregon State in overtime in late December in which the Zags led 61-49 with three minutes remaining only to go scoreless the rest of regulation.

On Monday, the Bulldogs used a basket from Tayla Dalton to take a 59-53 lead with 3 minutes, 43 seconds to go.

Gonzaga wouldn’t score another basket thereafter. Three ensuing turnovers against increased pressure and the Beavers had the Zags scrambling.

The Zags led 59-57 when graduate forward Yvonne Ejim was fouled with 57 seconds to go. But she missed both free throws.

OSU took the lead momentarily at 61-59 when Shuler got a steal at midcourt and turned it into a layup.

Ejim was fouled inside again, but she made the free throws to tie the score at 61-61 with 8.5 seconds to go.

Gonzaga’s defense stopped OSU’s first option on the Beavers’ final possession before Shuler muscled down low for the game-winner.

The game was expected to be tight throughout, but the way it got there probably wasn’t anticipated. It took Gonzaga until the second quarter to find solid footing.

The turnaround was impressive. The Zags used a combination of their best defense and efficient offense to turn a 17-9 deficit at the end of the first quarter into a 32-27 lead by halftime.

Gonzaga outscored the Beavers (18-15) 23-10 in the second.

Gonzaga didn’t turn the ball over in bunches as its had the propensity to do. The Zags had just one turnover in the first quarter, a season low.

In the game’s most critical moment, though, the glaring mistakes emerged again.

“In a game where you don’t turn it over very much those came at a really bad time,” Gonzaga coach Lisa Fortier said.

Fortier credited OSU’s defense.

“They guarded hard and they pressure,” Fortier said. “We didn’t execute a couple things. We were a little casual (with the ball) at the wrong times.”

“Basketball. We made plays, we didn’t make plays,” Ejim said about the final minutes.

Gonzaga’s defense packed inside, limiting the Beavers’ hopes of using their height advantage inside.

But what the Zags took away, opened the door elsewhere. Specifically the 3-point line where the Beavers made their first four attempts of the game and finished 11 of 26.

OSU was shooting 28% from 3-point range going into the game.

“Their percentage was way too good for a team that doesn’t actually make a ton of 3s,” Fortier said. “I wish we could done better with that.”

Fortier was making substitutions in the fourth quarter based on defensive and offensive needs.

“I liked it when we had our better defending team in and then sometimes we needed our better scoring team, and that wasn’t always the same,” Fortier said.

Ejim became Gonzaga’s unofficial leading scorer, moving her career total to 2,319 and passing Drew Timme (2,307).

She wasn’t interested in talking about the feat afterward. She said she came to Gonzaga to play basketball, not to break records.

Ejim had to work for everything against a stingy defense. She made 8-of-19 shots from the field for 18 points and had 14 rebounds for a 37th double-double of her career.

Freshman Allie Turner matched Ejim’s 18 points. She made 4 of 7 from 3-point range, moving within one of the single-season record held by Brynna Maxwell (96).

Graduate forward Maud Huijbens added 11 points.

“Selflessness and great toughness allows days like this to happen,” OSU coach Scott Rueck said. “Gonzaga is Gonzaga. We know we’re in their palace. They’ve set the bar for a long time (in the WCC) – both men and women. They’re basically the people that dominate this place. We’ve got to get over that kind of confidence and aura … that swagger they walk into the gym with. I thought our team came out unfazed – just ready to play another game against another good team.”

Portland (29-3) will seek a third straight tournament title, facing Oregon on Tuesday.