Broncos Outpaced by Bulldogs

Saturday, January 11

Fresno, Calif.

2 p.m. MT

Boise State

12-6,2-3Mountain West

Fresno State

11-6,2-2Mountain West

Boise St.

Fresno St.

Photo by: Luke Retana

1/11/2025 4:43:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score Gamebook Photos Highlights Photo Gallery

FRESNO, Calif. – Boise State women's basketball nearly pulled off a comeback attempt, but couldn't rally past Fresno State Saturday afternoon at the Save Mart Center. The Broncos (12-6, 2-3 Mountain West) were defeated by the Bulldogs (11-6, 2-2 MW), 68-62.

Trailing by as much as 10 points late in the second half, Boise State cut the deficit down to three points when Tatum Thompson converted a layup midway through the fourth quarter. Fresno State responded with an 8-2 spurt down the stretch to clinch the victory.
Thompson poured in a career performance in the loss, setting career-highs in points (24) and rebounds (16) to notch her second career double-double. Natalie Pasco also netted her second consecutive 20+ point performance.

Thompson opened the game scoring five points on the team's first two possessions, but the Bulldogs answered with seven consecutive points. The Broncos didn't score again until late in the opening quarter, when Dani Bayes stopped the drought with a corner 3-pointer. Fresno State responded with back-to-back baskets, but Pasco hit a turnaround jumper at the buzzer to knot the game at 12 after the first frame.

Teryn Gardner found Thompson for back-to-back baskets to open the second period, but the Bulldogs once again responded with a 6-0 spurt. Pasco paced the Broncos with nine points in the quarter, but the Blue and Orange trailed 31-27 at the break.

Hansen and Thompson combined to score nine points to tie the game midway through the quarter, but Fresno State answered with an 8-0 run to take a 44-36 lead. The Bulldogs ended the stanza on a 14-4 run to claim a 48-40 advantage heading to the final frame.

Hansen opened the quarter with a pair of 3-pointers, and Pasco added another a few possessions later to jumpstart the Bronco offense. Boise State used a 7-0 run to cut the lead to three with 4:39 remaining, but the Bulldogs answered with a long ball of their own on the ensuing possession. Gardner found Abby Muse with a wraparound pass to trim the lead to four, but Fresno State scored five consecutive points to extend its lead to nine and solidify the victory.

Top Broncos
- Tatum Thompson had a career-night against the Bulldogs. The junior recorded her second career double-double, marking career-highs in points (24) and rebounds (16).
- Natalie Pasco finished with 20 points, shooting 8-of-17 from the floor and 3-of-9 from beyond the arc.
- Mya Hansen added 13 points and five rebounds.

Notables
- Boise State had two players score over 20 points for the second-straight contest.
- Tatum Thompson became the first Bronco to record over 20 points and 10 rebounds since Elodie Lalotte notched 20 points and 12 rebounds at New Mexico on Jan. 21, 2023.
- Thompson has recorded back-to-back 20+ point games in the Save Mart Center. She scored a then-career-high 21 points against the Bulldogs a year ago.
- Natalie Pasco moved into a tie for fourth place in program history with 169 career 3-pointers. The junior is tied with Nadia Begay (2003-07) and Yaiza Rodriguez (2013-17).
- Pasco recorded back-to-back 20+ scoring performances for the second time in her career. The Danville, Calif., native began her career with consecutive 20+ scoring outputs.
- Pasco has buried eight 3-pointers over the last two games.
- Abby Muse moved into the top 10 in program history with 40 blocks on the year.

Quotables
"Tatum had a great performance tonight. As a team, we got outplayed tonight. They beat us to a lot of 50-50 balls. If we want to accomplish what we want to accomplish then we'll have to get tougher." – head coach Gordy Presnell

What's Next
Boise State will return to the Treasure Valley on Wednesday, January 15 against San Jose State. The contest will tip off at 6:30 p.m. MT and will be broadcast on the MW Network and 670 KBOI AM.