UNLV women advance to MWC final behind Booker’s clutch fourth quarter

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Tuesday, March 7, 2023 | 8:12 p.m.

For 37 minutes, it wasn’t Essence Booker’s night. But when the pressure was on, UNLV’s senior point guard met the challenge, scoring 12 clutch points in the final three minutes as the Scarlet and Gray held off San Diego State, 71-68, in the Mountain West tournament semifinal.

The UNLV women move on to Wednesday’s final, where they can punch their ticket to their second straight NCAA Tournament with a win.

It took nerves of steel from Booker in order to survive a San Diego State squad who couldn’t miss in the fourth quarter.

UNLV took a seemingly safe 50-41 lead into the final period, and a Desi-Rae Young basket made it an 11-point margin with eight minutes to play. But SDSU caught fire in a way that only seems to happen in March; after no 3-point baskets through the first three quarters, the Aztecs connected on five straight in the fourth, narrowing UNLV’s lead to a single possession on multiple occasions.

Fortunately for the Scarlet and Gray, Booker was also warming up. Though she had hit on just two of her first 13 shots from the field, the ball was in her hands on just about every possession down the stretch, and the reigning MWC tournament MVP came through.

When SDSU trimmed UNLV’s lead to 58-55 with 2:32 remaining, Booker drove into the paint and rose up for a midrange jumper to make it 60-55.

UNLV’s advantage was down to 61-59 with 40 seconds left when Booker snaked her way to the rim and dropped in a soft one-hander to increase the lead to 63-59.

From there, it was a matter of making free throws. Booker calmly went 8-of-8 from the line in the final three minutes, including a pair with six seconds left that turned a 1-point lead into a 71-68 advantage.

Booker looked unflappable, but said she felt the weight of the moment every time she stepped to the line to counter another San Diego State 3-pointer.

“They made some big shots,” Booker said with a laugh. “I was just trying not to look stressed, but I just knew I had to hold it together for my team, walk to the line with confidence, make the free-throws, and keep it together for the team. Stay poised.”

After Booker’s icy free throws, San Diego State’s desperation 3 at the buzzer came up short — the Aztecs’ only long-distance miss of the quarter — and UNLV is dancing on.

La Rocque said it was the kind of tough, grind-it-out affair that every team has to find a way to win in March.

“That's March basketball, right?” La Rocque said. “I mean, you can throw up something from half-court — a kid that's never made a shot — and you expect it to go in this month. You know, I'm not surprised.”

Young was unstoppable inside and posted 20 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks. Justice Ethridge went for 15 points on efficient 7-of-10 shooting.

Booker finished with a game-high 22 points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals.

It was the 21^st consecutive win for UNLV (30-2 overall), and Lindy La Rocque’s squad is one more victory away from earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.

Though UNLV has an at-large résumé worthy of consideration, La Rocque would prefer not to leave anything up to chance.

“We want to control our own destiny,” she said, “and that’s what we’re excited to do.”

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.