WBB 2026 wcc tournament vs. san francisco - 3_6_2026 - credit anderson haigler
52
San Diego SD 11-22,4-14 WCC
61
Winner San Francisco USF 17-13,9-9 WCC
San Diego SD
11-22,4-14 WCC
52
Final
61
San Francisco USF
17-13,9-9 WCC
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
San Diego SD 9 13 18 12 52
San Francisco USF 9 17 18 17 61

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

USD WBB Falls in Second Round of 2026 WCC Tournament

Toreros' 2025-2026 season comes to a close after 61-52 loss to San Francisco at Orleans Arena

LAS VEGAS – Despite getting the deficit down to two with 5:51 left in the fourth on a bucket from Hallie Rhodes, No. 11 San Diego was unable to complete the comeback over No. 7 University of San Francisco, falling 62-51 Friday in the second round of the 2026 West Coast Conference women's basketball tournament at Orleans Arena. 

"Every season comes to an end but I think we've a lot to be proud of our growth this year," said Blanche Alverson, who completes her first season as head coach with the Toreros. "We've been process-driven all year long and I think we've really achieved that goal. We've improved in every single area of the game. So really proud of our team overall."

Trimming USF's lead down to two also came before San Diego went on an 11-2 run to get it down to 40-37 with 2:08 left in the third quarter. 

Jessica Ajayi began the run with a 3-pointer before Olivia Owens scored five of the final eight points of the run before Lilly Amor knocked down a trey. 

Amor then made one more 3-pointer with 1:05 left in the quarter to cut the deficit down to two. In addition, Dresha Moore had a couple of key rebounds to sustain the run.

"When they had those moments in the third quarter, I thought that was our intention for the game," Alverson said. "It was really good to see that we could do it and we could execute the game plan that we were trying to do. 

"And we played well together. We moved and shared the ball. We got the best shot on the floor. And I thought that group on the floor in that moment really came to play and really stuck together, and they stayed as a unit on the floor. So really just proud of how they responded."

Owens, who was named to the conference's All-Freshman team earlier this week, capped off that third quarter run with two of her team-high 16 points to go along with seven rebounds.

"Just being aggressive and being in that mindset of getting to the basket," Owens said of her performance. "I think that was the mindset that I had going in. I always want to put our team in the best place to win." 

The true freshman also scored 11 first-half points to stay within striking distance in a low scoring first 20 minutes. 
 
Although San Diego shot 26.7%, the Toreros defense held the Dons to 20.6%. 

"San Francisco has a really good defense, and it was a lot of pressure, and they just defended really well," said Kylie Ray, who scored 10 points. 

Owens and Ray, who also added seven rebounds each, were part of a quartet of Toreros with six or more rebounds as Eva Ruse had nine and Rhodes with six as the team totaled 45 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass.

"I'm really proud of our post players today," Alverson said. "I thought Eva played awesome. She shot 100% from the field, had nine rebounds. She battled, she competed and we really needed every single rebound she got." 

San Francisco was led by All-WCC First Teamer Candy Edokpaigbe, who scored 25 points.

As the season draws to a close, and with a lot of returners potentially coming back to playing at the Jenny Craig Pavilion next season, Ray said the upside for next year is inevitable with a big offseason ahead.

"I think all of us have grown a lot and have gained a lot of experience," she said. "We're very young, so the future is bright, and excited for next year."

NOTABLE 
  • San Diego held San Francisco to 33.8% shooting. It is the fifth-best mark the Toreros have defended in a game against a Div. I opponent this season.
  • Owens, who started each of the Toreros' final 10 games, recorded 16 points, seven rebounds and four assists. It is her 10th time in the last 11 games she has posted double-digit points while averaging 15.8 points during that stretch. 
  • Rhodes, who needed nine points to reach 1,000 points for her career, came just short with six points. 
  • Ruse recorded a game-high nine rebounds. It is the seventh time this season the sophomore has logged nine or more rebounds in a game. 
  • Ray, who scored 10 points, also went 1-for-2 at the free throw line. She ends her sophomore season shooting 90.4% (85-for-94) at the charity stripe, becoming just the second player in program history to shoot 90% or better at the free throw line in a single season, minimum 50 attempts (Also: Amanda Bishop '97-'98 with 92.7%).
  • Amor scored eight points while playing all 40 minutes for the second straight game. The eight points are her most since scoring nine at Santa Clara (December 28, 2025).
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