Cougs Calm Hurricanes with a 62-47 Win

NASSAU, Bahamas – The Washington State women's basketball team had three players score double digits against Miami (Fla.) in the first game of the Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Championship, as the Cougars cruised to a 62-47 win over the Hurricanes.

Junior Johanna Teder led the Cougs in scoring for the second-straight game, as the guard from Estonia collected 15 points. Sophomore Charlisse Leger-Walker collected her first double-double of the season with a 15-rebound, 13-point effort against the Hurricanes. The 15 rebounds are a new career-high in boards for Leger-Walker, who pulled down 10 defensive rebounds alone. Junior Bella Murekatete added 12 points and four blocks to her ledger.

With the win, Washington State improves to 4-0 to open the year. It marks the sixth time in program history that the Cougs have opened a year with a 4-0 record, while it is the second time in the last three seasons that WSU has began a season at 4-0.

Both teams stood at a stalemate going into the locker room, as Miami closed the second quarter on a 13-3 run to tie up the game at 25-25.

The Cougars would regroup at the half and came out to score 25 points in the third quartet, while limiting the Hurricanes to just eight points to take a 50-33 lead going into the fourth. Washington State held Miami to 15.4 percent from the field in the third stanza, while shooting a blistering 71.4 percent in the frame. WSU maintained its double-digit lead throughout the fourth quarter, as Miami never got closer than 15 points, which was the final margin of victory of the Cougs.

Washington State shot 47.1 percent from the floor as a team, while outscoring Miami 34-22 in points in the paint. WSU also outrebounded the Hurricane, 39-27, en route to victory.

WSU head coach Kamie Ethridge on the Win
"I loved getting back on the court. It kind of felt like our first road game of the season, and I think we saw a little bit of nerves at first. I thought we started the game well. We executed great and guarded them very well. We were a little bit uncertain when Bella got in foul trouble early and that made us a little bit more finesse. We tried to play on the perimeter instead of attacking the rim and Miami's pressure got to us. I liked our response in the third quarter and we started doing more things that were successful for us. Any win we're going to celebrate and it's great to be here and get a win against a quality opponent."

Coug Notes

• Washington State collects its first win in program history in the Bahamas. WSU had previously been 0-2 in games in the Bahamas after going winless at the 2007 Junkanoo Jam in Freeport.
• With the win, WSU picks up its first win over Miami and evens the all-time series at 1-1.
• The 15 rebounds collected by Charlisse Leger-Walker against the Hurricanes is a new career-high for the guard from New Zealand. Her previous career-best performance on the glass came back on Feb. 19, 2021 against Colorado.
• With 15 points, junior Johanna Teder led the Cougars in scoring in back-to-back games for the first time in her WSU career.
• Sophomore Charlisse Leger-Walker extends her double-digit scoring streak to 13 games.

For more information on the Washington State women's basketball team, follow @WSUCougarWBB on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.