Juan Villa / The Collegian

Albuquerque, N.M. – The Fresno State women’s basketball team was unable to recover from early jitters Saturday afternoon in the NCAA tournament against Baylor, losing 88-67.

It was the first-ever NCAA tournament appearance for the Bulldogs. Fresno State was coming off the first Western Athletic Conference (WAC) championship and WAC tournament championship in Fresno State women’s basketball history.

Senior guard Tierre Wilson led the ‘Dogs with 23 points in her final game for Fresno State.

Baylor went on a 17-2 run midway through the first half that solidified the Bears’ lead for the rest of the game. Baylor had a huge day from freshman Melissa Jones, who provided 14 points and a team-leading 14 rebounds. Angela Tisdale led the Bears with 26 points.

For the Bulldogs, freshman guard Emma Andrews had 15 points, second only to Wilson. Wilson provided a SportsCenter-esque highlight in the second half when she received an alley-oop pass under the basket, twisting her shoulders backwards for the lay-up.

Juan Villa / The Collegian

Fresno State was dogged by their lack of three-point effectiveness, shooting only 3-17 from behind the arc. Wilson said she could tell that Baylor had scouted them well.

Coach Adrian Wiggins said that Baylor was a well-coached team that took away their three-point prowess.

“They did a great job of staying out on the perimeter and denying us,” Wiggins said. “We had to attack the rim instead. We did that and we weren’t bad at that to be honest.”

Wiggins was optimistic about Fresno State’s performance.

“We have room to grow,” Wiggins said. “Baylor helped with our vision for that.”

Bulldog guards Andrews and Wilson were easily able to penetrate into the paint, but were powerless to find uncontested shots against the taller Baylor team.

The hype and intensity of the NCAA tournament affected the play of Andrews early in the game, which led to errant passes and wild dribbling. Andrews eventually calmed down.

“I always get nervous before a game but it’s the good nervous,” Andrews said. “It gives you that energy to get out there and play.”

Juan Villa / The Collegian

Wiggins said he knows what the staff needs to work on to take the ‘Dogs to the next level. Wiggins was also proud of his team’s accomplishments this year.

He knows what he’s going to do when he returns home.

“We’ve got several banners to hang up in our arena, and I’m very proud of that,” Wiggins said.

For The Collegian and The Collegian Online’s extended coverage of the Fresno State women’s basketball team’s NCAA tournament game, check out The Collegian Online on Monday and The Collegian on Wednesday.