ESTERO, Fla. - Purdue women's basketball suffered its first loss of the season Sunday night, falling to 13th-ranked Stanford in overtime in the championship game of the Gulf Coast Showcase 71-65. Junior Ashley Morrissette had 16 points and was named to the all-tournament team, while senior April Wilson finished with 17 points, five rebounds and five assists.
The Boilermakers turned in an excellent defensive performance Sunday, holding Stanford to 34.5 percent shooting (19-55), and scoring 16 points off of 13 Cardinal turnovers. Purdue held the Cardinal without a field goal for over three minutes on seven different occasions during the game, including a stretch of 6:23 through the fourth quarter and start of overtime. Stanford turned the tide by making the most of its trips to the free throw line, cashing in 25-of-26 at the stripe in one of the most prolific performances by an opponent in Purdue history.
Both squads struggled from the field in the first half as Purdue was just 9-of-29 (.310) and Stanford made just 10-of-28 (.357) to take a 26-21 lead into the half. The Boilermakers blitzed the Cardinal out of the half, sinking a barrage of 3-pointers and taking the lead on five different occasions, including a 45-44 edge at the end of the third quarter. Wilson did the bulk of the damage, scoring 12 of her 17 in the period, including a pair of triples.
The fourth quarter continued to see the lead sway back-and-forth between the two squads as every Boilermaker run was countered by a Stanford 3-pointer. Stanford junior Briana Roberson hit a three in the waning seconds of the shot clock with 3:39 to play and senior teammate Lili Thompson pushed the Cardinal lead to four, 57-53, as she was awarded three free throws after another shot-clock beating attempt with 2:49 to play. Freshman Nora Kiesler and sophomore Andreona Keys provided the counter-punch for the Boilermakers as Kiesler drained a short jumper and Keys grabbed her own miss and stuffed it back to tie the game at 57-57 with 1:29 to play.
The Purdue defense held on the ensuing possession and junior Bridget Perry knocked down a 15-footer off a nice feed from Wilson with just 33 seconds left to give the Boilermakers a two-point lead. However, Perry was called for a foul after the timeout and Roberson sunk two free throws to push the game back to a tie. Morrissette had a shot at a game-winner, but it fell short and went to extra time.
Stanford did its work at the free throw line in the overtime period as well, hitting 9-of-9 and getting a well-timed 3-pointer from junior Kailee Johnson, making her first three of the season and just her second field goal in seven games, beating the shot clock and giving Stanford a 66-62 lead with 1:16 left. Morrissette hit another triple to pull within three, 68-65, with 40 seconds left, but was called for a foul on a desperation 3-pointer to beat the shot clock in the final 10 seconds and Roberson cashed in all three to seal the win.
Wilson and Morrissette were the only two in double figures for the Boilermakers, but they saw solid performances from Perry, Kiesler, senior Hayden Hamby and freshman Dominique McBryde as well. Perry had eight points, four rebounds, two assists and three steals before fouling out, while Kiesler had six points and a career-high nine rebounds. Hamby posted a season-high seven points and McBryde grabbed a career-best seven boards.
Roberson led all scorers with 26, including five triples, while Thompson finished with 17 points, six rebounds and five assists on her way to tournament MVP honors. Junior Erica McCall chipped in 12 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks for the Cardinal, who improved to 6-1 on the year with the win.
Purdue returns to action Thursday night at Mackey Arena as they host Boston College in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. The game will air live on the Big Ten Network at 6 p.m. ET.