Portland stuns No. 14 Gonzaga to win WCC title

Field Level Media|published: Tue 12th March, 20:01 2024

March 11, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Portland Pilots forward Kennedy Dickie (12) celebrates with forward Lucy Cochrane (30) against the Santa Clara Broncos after the game in the semifinals of the WCC Basketball Championship at Orleans Arena. credits: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Kennedy Dickie scored 16 points and Emme Shearer hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:39 to play to help Portland upset No. 14 Gonzaga 67-66 in the West Coast Conference championship game on Tuesday in Las Vegas.

Third-seeded Portland (21-12) ended top-seeded Gonzaga's 24-game winning streak and earned the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year. The Bulldogs (30-3), who beat Portland 90-40 on Feb. 28, should still make the tournament as an at-large team.

In a game that featured 23 lead changes and 17 ties, the Pilots outshot the Bulldogs 54.2 percent to 37.1 percent from the field and 50 percent to 25 percent from deep. Maisie Burnham scored 15 points, Shearer had 12 and Lucy Cochrane posted 11 points and seven rebounds for Portland.

Dickie's 3-pointer with 5:32 to play put Portland ahead 61-56, but Gonzaga scored the next six points. Finally, Shearer's triple was the dagger, as Kaylynne Truong made a 2-pointer for the Bulldogs before they missed their final three shots of the game.

Yvonne Ejim had 17 points and 11 rebounds and Eliza Hollingsworth put up 13 points and 11 rebounds for the Bulldogs, whose last loss came Nov. 26 to a then-No. 20 Louisville team.

—Field Level Media

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