Box Score
RENO, Nev. (March 8, 2017) – The Big Sky Conference women’s basketball tournament has caught a case of March Madness.
Sophomore Saylair Grandon swished a 17-foot jumper with 2 seconds to play to lift sixth-seeded Idaho State past third-seeded Northern Colorado 60-59 in the second straight upset in the quarterfinal round Wednesday night at the Reno Events Center.
The Bengals (17-13) will face No. 7 seed Portland State in the semifinals Friday at 2:35 p.m. PST. The Vikings knocked off No. 2 seed North Dakota earlier Wednesday.
It was the second straight year the Bengals pulled off an upset in the quarterfinals. Last season Idaho State ended top-seeded Montana State’s tournament in the quarters, also on a late game-winning shot.
Courtney Smith gave the Bears a 59-58 lead with 17 seconds to play by converting 1 of 2 free throws.
Idaho State used a timeout to advance the ball to the frontcourt. Freya Newton took the inbounds pass and dribbled time off the clock before handing off to Grandon. Grandon worked into the top of the key before pulling up for the pure jumper.
After a timeout, Northern Colorado got the ball to Savannah Smith who drove the baseline, but her runner as the horn sounded bounded off the rim.
Grandon made 8 of 11 shots from the floor to lead Idaho State with 18 points. Sophomore Grace Kenyon added 16 points and freshman Bianca Thacker chipped in 10.
Sophomore post Courtney Smith led the Bears (22-7) with 17 points, junior Savannah Scott added 15 and sophomore Savannah Smith finished with 10, but the Bears’ leading scorer was just 4 of 16 from the floor.
Northern Colorado started the game on fire, making 12 of its first 18 shots while bolting to a 27-17 lead. The Bengals, though, closed the half on an 11-2 run to get within a point, 29-28, at halftime. Estefania Ors had a 3-pointer and a three-point play during the burst.
The Bears still led 58-53 on an inside bucket from Scott with 51 seconds to play. A pair of free throws by Kenyon cut the gap to 58-55 seconds later and a Northern Colorado turnover led to a game-tying 3-pointer from Thacker.
Courtney Smith’s free throw put the Bears back on top by a point, setting the stage for Grandon’s heroics.