Fresno State Head Coach Ryan McCarthy had a heart-to-conversation earlier this week with guard Emilia Long regarding consistency and playing with pace. The senior responded with an all-around performance totaling 21 points, 5 assists and 4 rebounds; the kind of performance McCarthy has come to expect out of Long over the past several years coaching her at the University of Alaska-Anchorage and now at Fresno State.
“[Emilia] kind of embodies what we want our program to be about. Three girls on this team out of high school had division one offers, and she was not one of those players. And she just plays with that ultimate chip on her shoulder,” McCarthy said.
Long, who surpassed the 1,000 points career milestone with an all-around performance, wasn’t the only one who had it going. The Bulldogs put together one of its best games of the season, defeating Utah State 86-56 while 35-73 (47.9%) from the field and outrebounding the Aggies 47-29.
Key players
- Emilia Long (FS): 21 points (8-13 FG), 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 1 steal
- Ava Marr (FS): 16 points (6-11 FG), 2 rebounds
- Ellie Livingston (USU): 16 points (5-8 FG)
- Jamisyn Heaton (USU): 15 points, 4 rebounds
What happened
Utah State came out hot in the opening minute of the game, winning the tip and getting the ball to Jamisyn Heaton down low who scored over the top of Fresno State guard Indiya Clarke. After a Danae Powell triple, Aggies guard Elise Livingston answered with a three of her own.
The Bulldogs fought back and a few minutes later, Jaisa Gamble stepped back for a 15-foot mid range jumper, forcing an Aggies timeout. After the break, the Bulldog defense forced a bad pass leading to another timeout. The Bulldogs kept the pressure, going on a 21-9 run to end the first quarter, leading 24-14.
Two minutes into the second quarter, a three from Ava Marr and layups from Powell (2) and Gamble gave the ‘Dogs a 33-14 lead and forced the fourth and final Aggies timeout of the game.
“I’m not sure what we were doing that necessarily caused that, but it was good for us in the second half, because they couldn’t stop any momentum for us,” McCarthy said.
Fresno State went into halftime with a commanding 42-25 lead, led by guard Emilia Long (12 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds. Livingston had 12 first half points for the Aggies, who struggled to shoot overall besides Livingston (5-20 FG).
After not scoring for the first 3-and-a-half minutes of the second half, the Bulldogs scored on back-to-back-to-back possessions with threes from Marr and Long as well as a Powell-and-one layup. Two possessions later, Marr nailed another trey in front of the Fresno State bench giving the ‘Dogs a 54-31 lead with 4:21 remaining in the third quarter.
Fresno State went into the fourth with a 68-42 lead, a lead that only continued to grow. Fresno State finished the night with five players (Long, Powell, Gamble, Marr, and Djessira Diawara) scoring in double figures en route to a 86-56 win.
It was an especially impressive night for Diawara, who scored 12 points (5-7 FG) in addition to grabbing five rebounds and two steals. Clarke and Avery Watkins were also key contributors on the glass, each grabbing 10 rebounds.
What’s next
The win improves the team to 5-2 at home (2-0 neutral) but the Bulldogs still have yet to find their footing away from the Save Mart Center with a 1-7 road record, something McCarthy is keen on changing. He recalled after his first game at UAA in 2012 when his athletic director brought him into his office and told him “home games don’t really matter, because you ain’t a four letter word until you go out and beat somebody on the road.”
“I’ve told our team that, ‘this is cute, this is cool. But if we’re going to get any respect in this league, [on the road] is where it’s going to be, every road game in this conference is difficult,’” McCarthy said.
The Bulldogs will have two opportunities to improve on that road record in the coming week, playing at Nevada this Saturday, Jan. 17 at 1 p.m. and then at Boise State next Wednesday (1/21). The ‘Dogs return to the Save Mart Center on Jan. 24 to host Colorado State at 2 p.m. for Heroes Day and Greek Night.
Recap written by Al Scott, cover photo by Vincent Ordonio (FSM).