Fresno State women’s basketball: Bulldogs break San Jose ‘curse’

History could not hold back the Fresno State women’s basketball team Saturday at San Jose State, as the Bulldogs kept their perfect start in the Mountain West Conference intact with a 59-54 win over the Spartans.

It was the Bulldogs’ first win at The Event Center since 2011, with the Spartans winning three in a row by a combined margin of seven points. Two of those snapped lengthy Fresno State winning streaks.

Not this year. At halftime, co-captain Toni Smith told her team: “Let’s break this curse.”

The Bulldogs (9-7, 5-0 MWC) hit some bumps in the second quarter – going down seven after a Dezz Ramos three-pointer with 3:35 to go until halftime. Fresno State cut the deficit to one via a six-point swing, capped by Moriah Faulk’s three-pointer with four seconds left.

In the third quarter, Fresno State attacked the Spartans’ zone defense, passing side-to-side before finding an open player inside for the finish. Smith ignited the charge, scoring eight of her game-high 19 points.

As the Bulldogs’ offense started clicking, Ramos answered from long range for San Jose State (6-11, 4-2), draining her third three-pointer for a 36-34 lead with 6:08 to go in the third.

It was the Spartans’ last lead, as they went 0 for 6 from the field over the next 4:06 while Fresno State scored eight in a row for a 42-36 lead. Ramos didn’t let the Bulldogs get too far in front, capping a 6-0 run with another three-pointer with 6:59 remaining to tie it 42-42.

The Bulldogs kept their composure, showing enough offensive patience to continue cracking through the zone with finishes by Smith and freshman Breanne Knishka.

“(San Jose State’s) posts are very physical, but only in transition. Once you slowed them down and got them uncomfortable, it started opening things up,” Smith said.

Bego Faz Davalos set a screen for Shauqunna Collins, who finished a drive with a left-handed scoop to the basket for a nine-point lead with 2:17 to go.

After that, it was a cat-and-mouse game, with Fresno State sealing it at the free-throw line.

Collins finished with 14 points, scoring in double figures for the 11th time this season. Ramos led all scorers with 20, hitting 4 of 5 three-pointers.

“It’s a good team win,” coach Jaime White said. “I felt like everybody did their part and it was competitive. We made some mistakes and had too many turnovers, but we had different people show up at different times. We adapted as the game went on and made some plays when we needed to and made some stops when we needed them.”

This story was originally published January 16, 2016 at 6:52 PM with the headline "Fresno State women’s basketball: Bulldogs break San Jose ‘curse’."