Murekatete, Motuga lead WSU's upset of No. 19 Arizona women

Published Jan. 29, 2023 4:42 p.m. ET

Associated Press

TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Bella Murekatete scored 18 points, Ula Motuga added 16, and the two hit several key buckets down the stretch, lifting Washington State to a 70-59 victory over No. 19 Arizona on Sunday.

Motuga and Murekatete hit two buckets each in a 1 1/2-minute stretch late in the fourth quarter, giving the Cougars a 66-57 lead with 1:07 to go. The Wildcats misfired on their next two possessions and a free throw by Murekatete gave Washington State a 10-point lead with 27 seconds left.

Washington State led 48-46 heading to the fourth quarter and built a 58-50 lead before Madison Conner hit a 3-pointer to get the Wildcats within five points. That was as close as Arizona would get before Murekatete and Motuga took over down the stretch.

Tara Wallack had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Washington State (15-6, 5-5 Pac-12). Astera Tuhina scored 10 points and Murkatete had nine rebounds. Charlisse Leger-Walker had 10 rebounds, seven assists and five points although she was 0 for 13 from the field.

Esmery Martinez led Arizona with 14 points. Conner added 13 points and Kailyn Gilbert scored 11. The Wildcats (16-5, 6-4) shot only 30.8% in losing for the third time in five games.

After Arizona got the game's first bucket, the Cougars ran off 10 straight points to lead 10-2 with 5:54 remaining in the first quarter. Arizona bounced back with Martinez scoring 13 points in a 20-5 run that extended well into the second quarter, giving the Wildcats a 22-15 lead with 6:30 left in the half. The Cougars then took their turn, a 14-3 run giving them a 29-25 lead shortly before halftime. Washington State led 29-27 at the break.

The Cougars continued their surge into the third quarter, scoring the first nine points to build a 41-29 lead with 5:55 left in the quarter. Arizona then took its turn with a big scoring run as Conner scored eight points in a game-tying 15-3 burst.

The Cougars, who beat Arizona State 61-57 on Friday, swept their Arizona road trip for the first time since the 2012-2013 season. The Cougars are 8-1 in true road games this season.

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