Kendra Morris' last second shot saves Portland in San Diego.
NFL voice John Facenda once said "great teams aren't always great, they're just great when they have to be."
The University of Portland Pilots (12-7, 2-2 West Coast Conference), namely guard Kendra Morris, lived up to that as they pulled off a dramatic 76-75 overtime win against the University of San Diego Toreros.
Trailing by two with the game's final seconds of regulation ticking away, Morris tossed a desperation jump shot that went in right as the buzzer roared. The game went to a neck-and-neck overtime, that the Pilots held on for.
"We weren't giving up, we were here to win," says Morris, who was somewhat close to home this Saturday afternoon having grown up in Torrance, California. "We were in this position before with LMU...literally the same thing."
Portland's January 10th meeting against conference rival Loyola Marymount is one Morris would rather not discuss. With the score tied at 71, Morris defended the Lions' Renahy Young, who scored a go-ahead lay-up with 12 seconds left. Morris then took the ball down the court, only to get called for travelling in the key, while many still argue she was tripped.
Nine days later in San Diego, she made up for it.
"We grew as a team from that experience," adds Morris. "We just had to score...I did not want a repeat of that game."
The Pilots offensive success was largely dictated by guard Laiken Dollente, who scored 21 points and grabbed 5 rebounds. Forward Allyson Sievers contributed 14, and grabbed the most Portland boards with 10.
Ten was also the size of the Portland lead at one point, which San Diego overcame to keep the game close.
"We've got to find a way to defend teams," says Torero center Amber Sprague. "We don't have a problem putting balls in the basket, we just need more on the defensive end."
However, Portland's shooting percentage finished at 54.7 percent to San Diego's 38.2 on this Saturday afternoon.
"We missed a lot of wide-open lay-ups and a lot of free throws," Sprague continues. "That could have been the difference in the game."
Sprague finished with another double-double, dishing in 20 points and snagging 15 rebounds. Guard Amanda Rego, despite struggling to turn break-away plays into points, recorded 17.
Rego was given a gift as Portland was called for out-of-bounds with three seconds left in the overtime period and the score already 76-75. Rego however was unable to inbound the ball, incurred a five-second violation, and Portland proceeded to successfully inbound the ball and seal the deal.
The loss leaves USD (9-8, 0-3 WCC) still searching for their first conference win of the year. Players agree it's best to look ahead, but will try to dissect what hurt them against Portland.
"We'll watch a lot of film," Sprague says Sprague. "0-3 is not how we planned on being in conference play."
The Toreros head on the road, heading up to Santa Clara, and then Moraga to play St. Mary's.
The Pilots meanwhile get a week off, head home for class, and then head to Spokane to play the always challenging Gonzaga Bulldogs.
"We want to take it," says Morris. "This has built our confidence, extremely!"
