SAN DIEGO – The Aztec women's basketball team (12-4, 2-1) suffered their first home loss of the season when they fell to UNLV (14-3, 4-0) 76-70 inside Viejas Arena Saturday afternoon.
"We are disappointed by the outcome," Head coach Stacie Terry-Hutson said. "We really fought, but we made some defensive errors down the stretch, and we couldn't get stops when we needed to. We didn't shoot the ball very well, and when you don't shoot the ball very well from the three-point line, you need to do a better job on the defensive end."
SDSU had eight just eight turnovers but struggled from three, hitting just three of their 24 attempts.
Four the third game in a row, SDSU had at least four players scoring double-digits. Asia Avinger tied her season-high with 25 points while dishing out a team-high six assists.
Kim Villalobos had a season-high 17 on 7-for-9 shooting while Yummy Morris and Sophia Ramos each had 10 points.
Ramos' 10 points gave her 1,736 points for her career, pushing her past Falisha Wright (1992-95) and into second place on SDSU's all-time scoring list. Ramos also has the second most assists in program history.
Avinger was hot from the opening tip and scored eight of SDSU's first 10 points to help the Aztecs grab a 10-2 lead. Avinger made five of her first six shots and SDSU led 19-12 at the end of the first quarter.
"It's very important to make the first punch in every game we play," Avinger said postgame. "Coming in with the right mindset and being prepared is the most important piece. We always have a game plan and if we follow it to a T, there should be no problems, but we slipped up this game and they got too many rebounds and too many extra points."
SDSU would lead by as much as nine, but UNLV came roaring back and held a 34-31 lead at the half after finishing the second quarter on a 9-0 run. SDSU was able to force 12 UNLV turnovers in the first half, but the Rebels shot 67 percent in the second quarter.
The Rebels would go up by as much as 12 in the third quarter after the Aztecs had a stretch where they made just one of 10 shots.
SDSU pulled within four points midway through the fourth quarter only to see the Rebels immediately respond with a 6-0 run.
The Rebels had four players score in double-figures and were led by Justice Ethridge's 22 points. Desi-Rae Young, the reigning Mountain West Player of the Year had 16 points (14 in the second half) and 16 rebounds.
STAT OF THE GAME
UNLV outscored SDSU 19-1 on second chance points.
THE NOTE
This snapped a 12-game winning streak at home dating back to last season.
QUOTE OF THE GAME
"We have to go back and look at our mistakes, where we were good and where we can improve. I thought it was a good game, and fun for our fans, but there are a lot of areas we need to sharpen and get better in." Head Coach Stacie Terry-Hutson
UP NEXT
The Aztecs play at Fresno State Wednesday at 6 p.m.
Aztecs Fall to UNLV 76-70
