March 1, 2001
SAN DIEGO, Calif. - Portland freshman guard DaLove Woods scored a tournament-record 31 points as the Pilots upset Santa Clara 86-65 in the first round of the WCC Tournament at the Jenny Craig Pavilion. It marked only the second time in the tournament's 10-year history that a seventh seed upset a No. 2 seed to advance to the semifinals.
Santa Clara falls to 20-7 overall while Portland improves to 14-14. The loss also marks the most points allowed by a Bronco squad in 93 games, dating back to a 91-74 loss at Portland in 1998. Additionally, the Pilots snapped a seven-game losing streak in the series, and tied the all-times at 17-17.
It was the second upset in as many tournament games, as fifth-seed San Francisco upset fourth-seed Pepperdine 78-73 in the tournament opener. Saint Mary's and Gonzaga will play at 6 p.m. while LMU will play host San Diego at 8 p.m. The remaining four teams will be reseeded for semifinal play, which will begin on Friday at 6 p.m. The finals will be on Sunday, March 4 at 1 p.m.
The Broncos faced their eighth halftime deficit of the season after Portland took an 11-point edge into intermission, 40-29. The Pilots were up 23-30 when Woods scored eight straight points and finished the period with a game-high 12.
Junior guard Becki Ashbaugh opened the second half hot, with a drive and two three pointers. A basket by senior Annie Garrison closed the gap to 48-44 with 14 minutes remaining, but the Pilots regained control, converting two of three three-point plays in a two-minute span and the Broncos were down again by 11.
Garrison led Santa Clara with 18 points. Ashbaugh added 14 while junior guard Caroline Gruening and senior forward Jennifer Glysson added 11 points each. Santa Clara was held to 36 percent shooting from the field and a season-low 50 percent from the free throw line.
On the other side of the court, Khalila O'Rielly-Williams registered 18 points for the Pilots, while Sharon Rissmiller added 14. The Pilots shot 56 percent from the field and made 21 of 28 shots from the charity stripe.
