Giant Second Half Propels Broncos Past Spartans

Wednesday, February 7

Boise, Idaho

6:30 p.m. MT

Boise State

15-8,6-4Mountain West

San Jose State

6-16,1-9Mountain West

San Jose St.

Boise St.

2/7/2024 9:31:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Photo Gallery

BOISE, Idaho – Tied at 29 at halftime, Boise State women's basketball outscored San Jose State 44-13 in the second half to win, 73-42, Wednesday night at ExtraMile Arena.

Natalie Pasco led the team in scoring, netting 16 of her 19 points in the second half. Tatum Thompson added 14 points off the bench while Abby Muse added 10 points for the Broncos (15-8, 6-4 Mountain West).

Boise State scored the first six points of the game, but the Spartans (6-16, 1-9 MW) responded with a 10-3 run to take a one-point lead at the first media break. Thompson scored five points on her own at the end of the quarter to give Boise State a 16-13 first quarter lead.

The Spartans opened the second stanza with another 10-3 run to take a 23-19 lead, but Elodie Lalotte and Muse responded with back-to-back layups to even the score at the media timeout. Baskets from Thompson and Trista Hull put Boise State up 29-25 with 1:19 left in the half, but the Spartans scored four points in the final minute to tie the game at 29 as the two teams entered the locker room.

Muse scored the first four points of the second half for the Broncos as the team took a 33-32 lead three minutes into the period. After nearly two minutes went by without a basket, Mary Kay Naro grabbed a rebound and raced full court for a layup. The coast-to-coast play spawned an 11-0 run as Boise State took a 44-33 lead with 58 seconds left. The Spartans closed a nearly six-minute scoring drought with a pair of free throws with 50 seconds remaining, going into the fourth quarter trailing 44-35.

The fourth quarter quickly turned into the Pasco show, as the sophomore netted 11 points in the opening minutes of the frame as the Broncos jumped out to a 61-42 lead. Thompson added six-straight points late in the quarter, and Boise State finished the game with 14 consecutive points to claim its second-straight victory.

Top Broncos

Natalie Pasco led all scorers with 19 points, with 16 coming in the second half. She finished 6-of-14 from the floor and 6-of-7 from the foul line while adding three steals defensively.
Tatum Thompson finished with 14 points on 5-of-9 shooting. The sophomore grabbed three rebounds and picked up a pair of steals.
Abby Muse recorded 10 points, seven rebounds and two blocks.
Elodie Lalotte finished with eight points and seven rebounds.
Mary Kay Naro dished out eight assists on top of her seven points, three rebounds and three steals.

Notables

The Broncos outscored the Spartans 44-13 in the second half.
The 31-point margin of victory is the second 30+ point win in conference play for the Broncos. Boise State defeated Utah State 76-41 on Jan. 20.
Boise State held San Jose State to seven points in the fourth quarter, marking the second-straight game an opponent has scored only single digits in the final period.
Head coach Gordy Presnell picked up his 130th win in the MW, tying Elaine Elliot (Utah, 1999-2010) for the second-most in league history.
The Broncos have won four-straight games against San Jose State.
Elodie Lalotte became the 14th Bronco in program history to surpass 600 career rebounds, ending the game with 605.
The Broncos have blocked 147 shots this year, moving into third place in program history.
Mary Kay Naro dished out eight assists for the second-straight game.
Trista Hull matched her career-high with five offensive rebounds.
Boise State recorded a season-high 16 steals.
The Broncos scored 37 points off turnovers, a season-high.

Quotables

"This is a good win for us. They pressured us a lot throughout the game and we were able to settle in and handle it that second half. We struggled to score early on but we grinded it out. It was a great second half effort for us." – head coach Gordy Presnell

What's Next

The Broncos return to action on Saturday, Feb. 10 with a home game against Wyoming. The game is slated for a 1 p.m. MT tipoff and will be broadcast on the MW Network and on 670 KBOI AM.