Fresno State seniors stood center court alongside their family in their final home game as Bulldogs. 

“[I’m] really happy that they could finish out their season and finish out a good game. I thought all five of them did a good job” said Fresno State Head Coach Jaime White. 

Senior forward Imani Lacy was the top scorer for the ‘Dogs with 19 points, but it wasn’t enough to end the season strong. 

The Fresno State women’s basketball team lost its last conference game against New Mexico on Feb. 28 at the Save Mart Center. 

New Mexico won the jump ball and connected on a 3-point field goal to go up 3-0. 

Although the Lobos scored first, the Dogs’ always had a response. Starting guard Amaya West put Fresno State on the board with a 3 to tie the game at the 8-minute mark. 

Both teams had its shots connecting in a back-and-forth matchup, going on a 6-6 run each, to keep the game tied 9-9. 

At the end of the first quarter the ‘Dogs found momentum, going on a 18-7 run to take the lead, 28-16.

The Lobos opened up the second half with a successful 3-point field goal, cutting the deficit to 8 points.

At the 7-minute mark the Lobos came back with a 9-0 run. They went into 3-point striking distance, forcing the Bulldogs to take a timeout.

The timeout didn’t affect the Lobos as guard LaTascya Duff scored a 3-point jumper to tie the game, 32-32. Duff was the top scorer for New Mexico in the first half. 

After losing the lead, forward Aimee Book got the Dogs to a 1 point deficit, shooting a 3-point jumper to make it 37-35, with 4 minutes remaining in the half. 

In the final two minutes Duff went on a 5-point run. She ended the half 6-for-6 from the field, 5-for-5 from beyond the arc and 1-for-1 from the free throw line, scoring a total of 18 points going into halftime. 

“[Duff] doesn’t take a lot of time to get that shot off and so you pick and choose who you’re going to guard,” White said. 

The Lobos led at halftime 44-39. 

Opening up the second half, the Lobos continued strong with a made jumper to extend their lead by 7 points. 

At the 6-minute mark, the Dogs stayed mounted on the paint with a 4-point run, but it wasn’t enough as they still trailed 48-45. 

After a 2-minute cold streak, the Lobos scored a jumper to take an 8-point advantage over the ‘Dogs. 

In the final second of the third quarter, Duff made a 3-point jumper to extend the lead, 65-53.

At the beginning of the fourth quarter, the Lobos remained tough with a made layup to keep their advantage. 

Although the Dogs significantly trailed, they didn’t back down, shortening the deficit, 67-57, with just under eight minutes remaining. 

Once again, the Bulldogs couldn’t stop Duff behind the arc as she gained a bigger margin. Duff scored 27 points overall.

The Dogs couldn’t come back to end the game. New Mexico defeated Fresno State, 88-68.

“My consistent challenge to them is, ‘Let’s put 40 minutes together and play defense,” White said. 

Fresno State ended its season 3-15 in conference play and 10-21 overall, placing them ninth in Mountain West standings. The ‘Dogs will travel to Las Vegas to compete in the Mountain West Tournament from March 5-8 at the Thomas & Mack Center.