After running the University of Portland off the court to improve to 6-1 on Wednesday, the women’s basketball team will look to stay in high gear this weekend against Boise State and Long Beach State.
The Broncos stand undefeated at 7-0, and redshirt senior guard Tasha Harris was named Western Athletic Conference Player of the Week for her performance last week. The team is not to be underestimated, and head coach Paul Westhead is well aware of this.
“Our people scouting have said they’re a very good team,” Westhead said. “I would anticipate a very difficult game. That’s OK, we’ve played enough games now that we should be able to play a very difficult game and hopefully perform well.”
On Sunday, the Broncos defeated another Pacific-10 Conference team in Washington State by a score of 68-64. Harris scored 23 points and pulled down nine rebounds, while redshirt senior guard Jessica Van Hoogen added 18 points of her own. Boise State forced 19 turnovers and held Washington State to just 35.6 percent from the floor.
The Ducks will have to be careful with the ball against the Broncos, who have induced 20.3 turnovers per game this year. Boise State also averages 13 steals and 4.3 blocks per game, and its defense could provide a challenge for the high-octane Duck offense.
Long Beach State, meanwhile, is off to a 3-3 start. Senior guard Karina Figueroa leads the team with 18.2 points and 6.8 assists per game.
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