RENO, Nev. – A handoff from Tyra Whitehead. Two dribbles into the lane. An open jumper.
It wasn't easy, but some perfect execution down the stretch in overtime on Wednesday allowed San José State to top Nevada on a last-second jumper from senior Fieme'a Hafoka.
The Spartans (10-6, 4-1 Mountain West) won their third straight conference road game behind the strength of Hafoka's game-winner and Whitehead's seventh double-double of the season. The grad transfer from Wake Forest tallied 18 points and 14 rebounds to lead her team to the 72-70 victory over Nevada.
Sophomore guard Ayzhiana Basallo was right behind Whitehead with 16 points of her own. Raziya Potter had 15 in the win while Hafoka added 11 points and four rebounds.
"It worked out where Ty saw me cutting," said Hafoka when asked about the final play. "I took the ball on the curl and time was winding down so I just had to shoot it. It went in and I'm so happy we won."
"I took the ball on the curl and I just had to shoot it."
— San José State Women's Basketball (@SanJoseStateWBB) January 9, 2020
Postgame ?? from @fiemeahafoka, live from the spot of her game-winner ?? pic.twitter.com/NuTl2wB1QX
A game that featured 17 lead changes and 13 ties was close from wire to wire as neither team would hold a lead larger than six points on the night.
It was a strong finish to the first half and a Basallo jump shot that pulled SJSU to within 30-27 late in the second stanza, a deficit that would ultimately grow to 33-27 at the halftime break. San José State has made its living on strong starts to the second half, however, and that trend held true on Wednesday.
On the back of bookend Potter field goals, the visitors came out of the locker rooms on a 7-0 run to grab a 34-33 lead early in the third period. That lead would stay at one entering the final 10 minutes of regulation, and once again it was Potter (this time at the free throw line) who sent the game to overtime on a clutch make with six seconds remaining.
The Wolf Pack scored the first bucket of the extra period but a quick 6-0 run gave the Spartans the lead back until the home team tied the game with seven seconds left. That set the stage for Hafoka and the SJSU offense, which would promptly convert to earn yet another road victory for SJSU.
She called game! @fiemeahafoka with the winner on the road. pic.twitter.com/AruiV69DtH
— San José State Women's Basketball (@SanJoseStateWBB) January 9, 2020
"A win is a win," Hafoka said after the victory. "Winning on the road is really hard in this conference but we'll keep looking to improve and build on this one."
SJSU now owns an overall record of 10-6 on the season, making this team the quickest to reach 10 wins since the 2004-05 campaign (also started 10-6).
The Spartans stay on the road now and will look to keep things rolling at Colorado State on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off for that one is set for 2:00 p.m. (MT) in Fort Collins.