Wyoming Basketball Recap: Cowgirls Secure Dominant Win Over Utah State, Cowboys Fall to Boise State

Wyoming Basketball Recap: Cowgirls Secure Dominant Win Over Utah State, Cowboys Fall to Boise State

Jan 01, 2025; Laramie, WY, USA; Wyoming Cowgirls guard McKinley Dickerson (42) against the Utah State Aggies at Arena-Auditorium. The Cowgirls beat the Aggies 73-53. Mandatory Credit: Troy Babbitt-UW Media-Athletics

LARAMIE — The Wyoming Cowgirls opened the New Year with a commanding 73-53 victory over Utah State in their Mountain West Conference opener, while the Cowboys fell short in their comeback attempt against Boise State, 67-58, on Tuesday evening at the Arena-Auditorium.

Cowgirls Start Strong in Conference Play

The Cowgirls controlled their matchup against Utah State from start to finish, pushing their record above .500 for the first time this season. Wyoming’s offense clicked early, opening with a 10-3 run and maintaining a 15-7 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Malene Pedersen led the way with 22 points on 7-of-13 shooting, just shy of her career-high. Allyson Fertig contributed 14 points and nine rebounds, narrowly missing a double-double. Kati Ollilainen, making her first career start, added 11 points and five assists, while McKinley Dickerson scored a season-high 11 points.

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The Cowgirls built a 40-25 halftime lead, thanks to a 16-point second quarter highlighted by strong ball movement and efficient shooting. Utah State briefly cut the margin to single digits in the third quarter, but Wyoming responded with a defensive stand and timely scoring to secure the win.

“I thought we started just a little slow, knocking off a little bit of rust from the Holiday Break,” said Heather Ezell postgame. “But, once we understood the defense they were in and what we were doing, I thought we really executed on that end. I thought we guarded pretty dang well on the defensive end, especially from our guards. Overall, we wanted to take away their threes and I thought we did that well today.”

Wyoming shot 46.4% from the field, including 42% from beyond the arc, while holding Utah State to just 30.6% shooting overall and 21.7% from deep. The Cowgirls also dominated in second-chance points, 18-9, and outscored the Aggies 32-24 in the paint.

The Cowgirls will travel to Fresno State on Saturday for their first road conference game. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m.

Cowboys’ Rally Falls Short Against Boise State

The Cowboys saw their three-game winning streak snapped as they fell to Mountain West preseason favorite Boise State. Despite a sluggish start, Wyoming erased a 12-point deficit to briefly take a second-half lead, only to see the Broncos pull away late.

A.J. Wills came off the bench to score a career-high 17 points, hitting five of seven attempts from three-point range. Obi Agbim added 14 points, continuing his streak of scoring in double figures in every game this season. Dontaie Allen chipped in eight points, including a pair of threes.

The Cowboys trailed 25-19 at halftime after shooting just 24% from the field in the first half. They opened the second half with a renewed energy, using a 10-0 run to close the gap. A three-pointer from Wills midway through the half gave Wyoming a 39-38 lead, but Boise State quickly regained control with a key three-pointer of their own.

“Got the game we wanted, but we just didn’t get the outcome we wanted,” UW head coach Sundance Wicks.” We have been in a lot of these games and teams have to go through things and carry that over in the future. We have some toughness and that is what seasoned teams have and we need to find some more.”

The Broncos, led by Alvaro Cardenas with 19 points and Tyson Degenhart with 16 points and nine rebounds, shot 45.7% from the field compared to Wyoming’s 35.1%. Boise State also held a decisive 41-28 edge in rebounds, including a 14-9 advantage on the offensive glass.

The Cowboys will look to bounce back on Saturday when they travel to take on Air Force at 3 p.m. inside Clune Arena.