SANTA CLARA, Calif. – For the second time in as many games, Tia Hay led all scorers and helped Santa Clara women's basketball top Nevada 56-48 Saturday evening in Leavey Center.
Hay scored 24 while also adding five rebounds, three steals and a pair of assists to get the Broncos (2-0) past the tough defense of the Wolfpack (0-2).
"Tonight we got exactly what I saw when I recruited Tia," Santa Clara head coach Bill Carr said. "She plays at her pace and she can score it, defend it, and she's tough. She made some tough plays tonight to kind of will us to a win."
Santa Clara ended up going 10 minutes without a field goal in the third and fourth quarters before a layup from Ashlyn Herlihy at 6:36 was followed by a 3-pointer from Wolph to begin a 15-2 run that put the game away.
"Both teams really guard," Carr said. "Tonight was going to be the team that could get to a six or eight-point lead. Once we did that, it's hard to come back from in that kind of game. I'm really proud of the girls' toughness there at the end."
Herlihy finished the night with 10 points on 5-for-9 shooting from the field and eight rebounds while also chipping in three assists.
Nevada made their run when the Broncos went cold from the field to cut the deficit to 39-38 at the end of the third quarter. Jade Redmon and Terae Briggs led the comeback for the Wolfpack during an 11-1 run in the period.
Briggs finished with a team-high 18 points while also bringing down 10 rebounds for the double-double. Redmond scored 12 but the rest of the team managed just 18 points on 5-for-31 shooting from the field.
Santa Clara started the game hot, scoring the first 10 of the game, starting with an easy bucket for Lauren Yearwood.
Yearwood filled up the stat sheet with six points, nine rebounds, and seven blocks, tied for third most in a game in program history.
Nevada used a 6-0 run over two minutes in the second quarter to take its first lead of the game at 20-18 at the 3:29 mark but Hay put the Broncos right back on top with a 3-pointer on the next possession.
The Wolfpack would take the lead one final time at 22-21 with 2:45 to go in the second quarter before a 10-2 run put Santa Clara back up for good.
HIGHLIGHTS
HIGHLIGHTS | Solid combination of offensive and defensive plays plus contributions from several players in today's victory over Nevada! #StampedeTogether #SCUBroncos pic.twitter.com/bAwgaIeH9z
— Santa Clara Women's Basketball (@Santaclarawbb) November 11, 2018
NOTES
- Santa Clara is now 13-12 all-time against Nevada.
- The Broncos finished the night with 17 assists on 23 made baskets.
- Santa Clara used the same starting lineup for the second consecutive game.
UP NEXT
Santa Clara concludes its three-game homestand with San Diego State Tuesday at 3 p.m.
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