March 5, 2010
Box Score
LAS VEGAS, Nev. - With 3.3 seconds left in the game, Maggie Goldenberger hit the game-winning shot to lift the eighth-seeded Santa Clara University women's basketball team to a stunning 68-67 victory over the fifth-seeded University of San Diego Friday afternoon in the first game of the West Coast Conference Tournament.
With the Toreros (15-14) trailing 66-65 with 34 seconds left, Emily Hatch stole the inbounds pass, then put it into the hands of sophomore guard Dominique Conners. Conners then backed the ball up to half court and with 19 seconds left she began to drive to the basket, and put up a jumper that hit nothing but net to give San Diego the lead at 67-66 with just 14 second left.
Santa Clara (4-26) then drove the length of the court and after several attempts to get a shot off failed because of solid Torero defense, Goldenberger finally was able to get the game-winning shot off at about the free throw line to give SCU the victory.
The Toreros had one last shot attempt, as Conners drove the length of the floor in two seconds and fired off an off balance shot at the buzzer that did not fall, to leave the game at its final of 68-67.
Conners led all scorers with 22 points on 8-for-18 shooting, while also recording three steals. Morgan Henderson was the second of four Toreros in double figures as she had 13 on 5-for-10 shooting and USD received career-nights from Nya Mason, who had a career-high 10 points, and Sarah VanderHorst who also had 10 points and a career-high five rebounds. USD was out rebounded 31-28 and shot .471 from the field.
San Diego came out firing on all cylinders in the first half, as a Conners lay-up jump-started a 10-5 San Diego run that was capped on a Mason lay-up to give the Toreros an early Momentum with 15:41 to go.
Over the next eight minutes of action, the Broncos slowly chipped away at the lead and eventually evened things up at 20-20 on a Kathy Willinsky jumper with 7:46 to go. SCU would eventually take its first lead of the game at 23-22 on a Rhianna Faithhill 3-pointer, and then pushed the lead up to 26-23 with 6:54 to go.
However, back-to-back baskets by Conners and Henderson would spark an 8-0 Torero run to give USD back the momentum and a 30-26 edge with 2:47 to go. The Toreros would not let go of that advantage as they went into the break up 37-30.
In the second half the Toreros again came out firing and quickly build up its lead to as many as eight on several times over the first eight minutes of play. Then with USD leading 46-38, the Broncos went on a 9-0 run to take only its second lead of the game at 47-46 with 10:45 to go, forcing the Toreros into a timeout.
Out of the timeout, the Toreros and Broncos traded basket for basket with each team holding its turn with the lead over the next four minutes of action, until the Broncos took advantage of a few questionable officiating calls, which sent Santa Clara to the line and gave them a four-point edge at 55-51 with 7:39 to go.
After the Broncos took a six-point lead at 57-51, a Henderson jumper then sparked a 5-1 USD run to pull San Diego back to within two at 58-56 with 4:56 to go.
