After coming off their first loss of the season against the University of Utah on Nov. 11, Weber State University’s women’s basketball team took a devastating loss against the University of San Diego Toreros, 66–63. This loss places them 1–2 this season.
“We had to lock in on defense,” junior forward Antoinette Emma-Nnopu said. “That was our main goal to improve from the Utah game to this game.”
The last time these two teams went head-to-head was on Nov. 24, 2023, where the Toreros took the win on their home court. Over the six times these teams have met, Weber took their only win back in 1986.
To start the game, the Toreros made the first basket. San Diego maintained this lead throughout the entire first quarter, ending with the score 16–12. Weber would have been down 9–16 if it wasn’t for the foul at the shot clock giving sophomore forward Taylor Smith three free throws.
Junior guard Lanae Billy, took the first three of the game followed by another nice three after an offensive rebound to bring Weber within 1 point, 25–26. To end the half, San Diego’s junior guard, Jayden Rhodes, hit a three pointer giving the Toreros a double digit lead, 40–28.
“In the beginning, I was a little nervous, but I feel like once my team needed me, I locked in,” Billy said.
Weber, playing from behind, tried to close the gap by taking their chances at the 3-point line. A total of nine 3-pointers were attempted during the third quarter which is equal to the total number of 3-pointers that they shot during the first half. Despite the many attempts, they were only able to sink three of those nine.
Weber tried a new strategy going into the fourth quarter which resulted in them going on a 13–0 run starting at 7:28 and lasting until there was 0:36 left on the clock. Despite Weber holding San Diego to eight points during the fourth quarter, they were unable to take the lead. The Toreros walked away with the win, 66–63.
“I thought we did some things that were very controllable on our end that we need to be better at moving forward,” head coach Jenteal Jackson said. “I was proud of the way they responded in the second half, their bounce back, their fight to never quit, and you know we nearly pulled that thing off when being down double digits for a good chunk of the game. So, I think our fight’s always gonna be there.”
The Wildcats will travel to Saint George to face off against Utah Tech University on Nov. 16 at 7 p.m.
