BOISE, Idaho – Facing its first road test of the season, the Eastern Washington University women's basketball team played Boise State in Boise, Idaho, today (Dec. 10), falling by a final score of 84-64. Kennedy Dickie led the way with 16 points, while freshman Maisie Burnham added 12.
 
Eastern Washington improved its shooting percentage from 35.7 percent (10-28) in the first half to 48.3 percent (14-29) in the second. They also made a season-high eight three-pointers, but it was not a match against the Broncos, who shot 47.8 percent on the afternoon.
 
"I thought our overall effort was good. We still have a lot of areas that we have to have continued growth in quickly. Our post players had tough matchups inside and Boise State did an excellent job of countering our collapsing defense," said head coach Wendy Schuller. "I was encouraged by our ability to adjust at halftime and find ways to score in the second half. We saw some exciting things from young players and I love the heart of this team. I can't wait to get back to work this weekend."
 
Boise State opened the game on an 8-0 run before Kennedy Dickie snapped the lead in half with four-straight points. The Broncos built a 19-8 lead when Grace Kirscher hit a buzzer-beater three to cut the deficit to 19-11 to end the first quarter.
 
It was all Broncos to open the second quarter as they cruised on a 7-0 run that was snapped by Kirscher's second three-pointer of the game. The Eagles found their footing when Aaliyah Alexander scored five-straight points. A free throw from Nuria Cunill followed and a Maisie Burnham layup, her first basket as an Eagle, made it an 8-0 run to cut BSU's lead to 30-22. Boise State responded, outscoring Eastern Washington 12-4 down the stretch to take a 42-26 lead into the half.
 
The Eagles fell behind 51-31 in the third quarter, but refused to go away, using a 6-0 run and holding Boise State scoreless for nearly three minutes. Despite trailing 61-44 at the end of the third, Eastern Washington was only outscored 19-to-18 and made 50 percent of its field goal attempts while holding the Broncos 40 percent.
 
Eastern Washington was steady offensively in the fourth quarter as well, going 7-for-15 from the field with four three-pointers. Dickie (8 points) and Burnham (7 points) helped the Eagles only be outscored by the Broncos 23-20 in the fourth, but the deficit was too much to overcome as Eastern Washington fell to Boise State, 84-64.
 
WIN-LOSS RECORDS: Eastern Washington falls to 0-3 (0-2 Big Sky) while the Broncos remain undefeated with a 3-0 record. This marks the 11^th-straight season the teams have met in non-conference play.
 
TOP PERFORMANCES: Sophomore Kennedy Dickie led the Eagles in scoring with a season-high 16 points. Dickie was 5-for-10 from the field and perfect from three-point range (2-2) and the free throw line (4-4).
 
Freshman Maisie Burnham scored 12 points off of the bench in just her second career game as an Eagle. She was 4-for-7 from the field with four rebounds, two steals and a block.
 
Nuria Cunill, also a freshman, led the team with six rebounds. She also had two assists and scored five points off of the bench.
 
Grace Kirscher scored nine points, all coming from three-point range. Jenna Dick added eight points while leading the team in assists with three and steals with four. Milly Knowles added two blocks and five rebounds.
 
KEY STATISTICS: Eastern Washington shot 42.1 percent from the field (24-57) on the night. They were 8-for-16 from three-point range and nearly perfect at the line, making 8-of-10 free throw attempts.
 
The Eagles were out-rebounded by Boise State, 41 to 30. Turnovers troubled both teams, as EWU committed 20 and BSU had 14. The Eagles were also out-scored in the paint, 42 to 30.
 
The Broncos also made eight three pointers. They were 33-for-69 (47.8%) from the field and 10-for-14 (71.4%) from the charity stripe.
 
UP NEXT: Eastern Washington returns home for a non-conference game at Reese Court against Grand Canyon on Monday, Dec. 14. Tip-off is set for 12:05 p.m. Pacific time and the game will be broadcasted for free on Pluto TV Ch. 1053.