SPOKANE, Wash. – A historic 2024-25 campaign came to a close for the UTSA women’s basketball team on Thursday, as they suffered a 67-51 defeat at the hands of Gonzaga at the McCarthey Center in the First Round of the Women’s Basketball Invitational Tournament.
The Roadrunners (26-5, 17-1 The American) fell to the Bulldogs (23-10, 17-3 WCC), capping off a season that saw UTSA claim their first regular-season conference championship since 2008-09, as well as setting a new program record for wins in a campaign. In the effort, sophomore Sidney Love led the squad with 15 points, while redshirt senior Jordyn Jenkins posted 14 points with seven rebounds.
A sophomore Idara Udo bucket and a junior Maya Linton three handed UTSA the first five points of the contest, but Gonzaga got back-to-back shots to fall to keep things close. Graduate student Nina De Leon Negron banged home a triple, and the Bulldogs again responded, trimming their deficit to one. A Jenkins trey midway through the quarter saw a 13-9 edge, and a later Love jumper put UTSA up by six. The Zags then embarked on a 12-0 run to take a 23-17 lead into the subsequent stanza.
The squads traded three-pointers to kick-start the second, and a back-and-forth battle ensued. Gonzaga then got the final two shots to fall, taking a 36-27 lead into the locker room.
Back-to-back attempts fell for the Bulldogs to open the third, as they worked a 44-30 advantage. Free throws for freshman Taylor Ross and Love brought UTSA within 10, ahead of a 48-37 score line entering the fourth.
The Zags hit a triple in the final frame, and a Love and-one followed. From there, the Bulldogs kept UTSA at arms-length, as a three-pointer saw a 56-42 advantage with five minutes to play. Gonzaga then finished strong, using a 67-51 victory to advance into the second round.
Keep up with UTSA Women’s Basketball all season long by following the program on Facebook /UTSAWBB, X (Twitter) @UTSAWBB, and on Instagram @UTSA_WBB
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