Oregon State
Arizona
OSU Drops Heartbreaker In Overtime To Arizona, 79-77
March 02, 2000 | Women's Basketball
March 2, 2000
TUCSON, Ariz. - Oregon State dictated the action for 95 percent of the game here Thursday night but couldn't deliver the knockout punch as the 20th ranked Arizona Wildcats clawed their way to a 79-77 overtime victory over the Beavers before 2,602 fans at the McKale Center.
Oregon State had a chance to either tie the game for win the contest in overtime as it had the ball with 29.7 seconds to play following a pair of free throws by the Wildcats' Felecity Willis that put Arizona up by the final margin.
The Beavers called a timeout with 21.5 seconds to play to set up its final strategy. OSU wanted to get the ball inside to Sissel Pierce and play the inside outside game. Arizona did a good job of denying Felicia Ragland and Cherrith and Chassie Wiersma any room to shoot a 3-pointer.
With time running out, Ragland got the ball on the baseline and got off a 15-foot jump shot that went partially down but popped out. Pierce got her hands on the ball but couldn't get free for a putback before the final horn sounded.
The heartbreaking loss stopped an opportunity by OSU to get its second straight victory over a ranked opponent. The Beavers defeated the 22nd ranked UCLA Bruins last Saturday and came into Tucson to meet the 20th ranked (AP) and 16th ranked (USA Today) Wildcats.
The loss stopped OSU's four-game overall winning streak and three-game Pac-10 road winning streak. The Beavers have now lost seven straight to Arizona. The Beavers now are 14-14 overall and 10-6 in the Pac-10, while the Wildcats are 22-5 and 11-4.
Until the last five minutes of regulation, Oregon State was putting a clinic on when it comes to passing the ball and playing against a tight zone defense. It reminded Beaver followers of the way Ralph Miller's OSU teams attacked on offense.
In the final five minutes, Arizona decided to go to an all-out full court press and the pressure forced some Beaver turnovers that allowed the Wildcats to get back into the game and take the lead for the first time since the opening basket of the game on a 3-pointer by Lisa Griffith for a 67-65 Arizona lead with :31 seconds to play.
Chassie Wiersma got fouled with :01 seconds left in the game and hit a pair of free throws to send the contest into overtime.
Both teams traded baskets all through the overtime period. Oregon State never led during the overtime period, but had two opportunities to go ahead.
The Beavers have come a long way in the last month. When these two clubs met earlier in Corvallis the Wildcats scored a one-sided 65-49 victory and dominated every aspect of the game.
The shoe was on the other foot Thursday night as Oregon State dominated most aspects of the game, but simply couldn't deliver the knockout punch in a game that could have put the Beavers right in the chase for the Pac-10 title.
After being outrebounded by 10 at Corvallis, Oregon State held a 43-31 edge on the boards, including 22 offensive rebounds. Petraitis had her second career double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Pierce had 19 points, while the Wiersma's both added 12 points and Ragland added 16.
Oregon State had a lead of 12 points, 58-46, with 7:42 to play in the game and appeared to be heading for the upset victory. However, that is when the Arizona press started to force some turnovers and let the Wildcats climb back into the game.
The Beavers had an outstanding first half, trailing only one time, a 2-0 start by Arizona on a basket by Elizabeth Pickney. OSU quickly countered with a 3-pointer by Cherrith Wiersma and the Beavers had leads of 13 points four different times in the first 20 minutes, the last time at 30-17.
The Wildcats outscored the Beavers 14-7 from that point on as OSU went to the locker room with a slim 36-34 lead. Reda Petraitis was the Beaver who led OSU's first half charge as she scored 12 points, pulled down 6 rebounds (4 offensive) and added a pair of assists and steals.
Oregon State will complete its Arizona swing on Saturday at Tempe, facing the Arizona State Sun Devils at 6:00 p.m PST. Live reports of the OSU-ASU game will be heard over the Oregon State Beavers' basketball radio network with Jon Warren.
