Strong fourth quarter powers Nevada past Eastern Washington

SEATTLE – In a game that remained back-and-forth through the first three quarters, the Nevada women’s basketball team (8-3) used a high-powered fourth quarter to grab its seventh-consecutive victory, defeating Eastern Washington (2-6) 71-60 on Sunday afternoon at Alaska Airlines Arena. Four Wolf Pack players scored in double figures with freshman Audrey Roden leading the way with 18 points and sophomore Lexie Givens posting her first-career double-double. 

Roden led the offensive attack with 18 points and also tied her career-high in steals with three and added a career-high two blocks, two rebounds and one assist. The West Linn, Ore., native shot 4-for-6 from three on the day. Senior Da’Ja Hamilton created an offensive punch with 16 points and chipped in two rebounds, one block and one assist. Givens posted 10 points and a career-high 14 rebounds to energize the Pack on both ends of the court. Givens grabbed five rebounds in the fourth quarter to support the Pack’s outburst against the Eagles. Senior Amaya West had a strong performance, totaling 10 points to go along with five rebounds, two steals and one block. Washington native Nia Alexander also chipped in six points and six rebounds to join two steals and one assist. Five Wolf Pack players tallied two or more steals against the Eagles. 

Alexander recorded the game’s first points on a jumper in the game’s first 15 seconds. An Eastern Washington three at 8:00 gave the Eagles its first lead of the day. Eastern Washington grabbed a four-point lead, but Nevada fired back with a Roden three and Hamilton jumper to regain a 13-12 lead. Nevada grabbed a 17-13 lead to close the first quarter.

Two made free throws by Hamilton secured a six-point Nevada lead with 7:39 left in the second before Eastern Washington went on a four-point run to close the gap. The Eagles came within one on a layup, but the Pack responded with a layup and made free throws by Givens and Hamilton with 4:04 left. West closed the second quarter with a layup at 0:11 to grab a 33-26 lead at half.

Eastern Washington opened the third quarter on a 4-0 run to bring the score to 33-30 in favor of Nevada. The Pack called a timeout to regather and then answered back with a Hamilton jumper, moving the Nevada lead back to five. The Eagles tied it up at 44 at the 2:44 mark and then took a 47-46 lead at the with 1:17 left. Alexander closed the third quarter with a jumper, but Eastern Washington took a 49-48 lead heading into the game’s final 10 minutes. 

Nevada didn’t panic and regained its lead on a three by Roden (51-49) with 7:29 left in the ballgame. Roden knocked down another clutch three and drew a foul to complete the four-point play (55-52) at 6:43. Roden continued her hot streak and hit a jumper in the paint, securing a 57-52 edge. A Givens layup with 4:56 left pushed the lead to eight. Nevada put the game away on two West free throws at 3:36 for a 13-point lead (66-53). Eastern Washington sent Nevada to the free throw line in the game’s final minutes in an attempt to give the Eagles more scoring opportunities, but the Pack knocked down five free throws to cruise to its eighth victory of the season. 

UP NEXT

The Pack ends the Husky Classic with a matchup against Washington (4-3) at 2 p.m. on Monday. The Huskies defeated Eastern Washington, 62-59, on Friday. 

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