Photo courtesy of Nevada Athletics. Da’Ja Hamilton shot 4-9 in the field and 3-6 on the three point line.

The Wolf Pack are rolling right now. They have not lost a game in the month of December and have won their last two games by more than 30 points. Nevada played a great game dismantling Bushnell and beating them 80-42 on Dec. 11.

Nevada put on an offensive show as the Wolf Pack had four players reach double digit points. Senior guard Nia Alexander had a team high 14 points, shooting an impressive 7-12 on field goals. Alexander had an all around great game as she finished with six rebounds, three assists and four steals. 

Senior guard Da’Ja Hamilton had 11 points, five rebounds and two assists.  Hamilton shot an efficient 4-9 from the field and a strong 3-6 shooting from the three point line. Senior guard Kylie Jimenez had one of her higher-scoring performances as she finished with 12 points on 4-8 shooting from the field. Kylie also added three assists and a team-high five steals. 

The starters were rounded out by sophomore forward Lexie Givens, who turned in four points, one assist and a game-high eight rebounds. Sophomore guard Alyssa Jimenez ended with four points, one rebound, three assists, three steals and one block. 

There were a lot of contributors who came off the bench this game, but the main two were freshman guard Audrey Roden and senior guard Amaya West. Roden continued her incredible freshman campaign with 13 points, three rebounds and three steals. West finished with a modest seven points, two rebounds and three steals. 

Nevada opened the game with a 9-2 run. West hit on a jumper, Kylie knocked down two free throws and Roden added a layup and a three-pointer. Nevada gave up one more bucket, lowering their lead to 9-4 with four minutes left in the first quarter. 

The Wolf Pack continued to spread the ball around as Alexander made a layup and Hamilton hit a three-pointer for their first points of the game. Nevada conceded a couple more buckets and Alexander finished the quarter with another layup and a jumper. Nevada ended the first quarter with a 18-9 lead.

There was not much scoring to start the second quarter as the Wolf Pack offense slowed down but they continued to play strong defense. Nevada surrendered a couple buckets but they were finally able to put the ball in the basket when West connected on a three-pointer and senior guard Eliska Stebetakova added two free throws and a layup. This maneuver made the score 25-18 with Nevada up with four minutes left in the second quarter. Roden got to the line and hit both of her free throws, but Nevada conceded back to back threes, making the score 27-24. However, this is when Kylie caught fire finishing with back to back jumpers and a three-pointer on the final three possessions of the quarter. This scoring burst led to Nevada taking a 34-26 lead into halftime.

Bushnell opened up the second half with some steam as they connected on a jumper and a three-pointer. Nevada responded with an Alyssa jumper and a Givens layup. Nevada gave up another three, which shrunk their lead to 40-34 with 5:30 left in the third quarter. This is when Nevada began to click and blow the game wide open. 

The Wolf Pack would go on a massive 16-2 run. Nevada started to break down the Bushnell defense and get easy looks in the paint as well as earning shots at the free throw line. Hamilton and West got the scoring started as they both scored a layup. Roden got hot on this run as she added two layups and hit two free throws. Alyssa hit two free throws, Alexander had a layup and sophomore guard Kenna Holt added a layup of her own. Nevada was now up 54-35 at the end of the third quarter. 

At the start of the fourth quarter, the Wolf Pack offense had cooled down and Bushnell began to put the ball in the basket. Bushnell opened the quarter on a 5-0 run, but this momentum was quickly stopped when Hamilton hit a three. The score was 57-40 with seven minutes left in the game. The Wolf Pack found their groove again as they were able to create stops and score with ease. Alexander and Givens both made lay ups to kick off Nevada’s scoring in the fourth quarter. This was followed up by Kylie and Hamilton three-pointers, as well as two layups from Alexander. These shots made the score 71-40 with three minutes left in the game. 

Now, other role players in Nevada got in the game. Sophomore guard Gabby Rones went one for one, hitting a three-pointer. Junior guard Bethany Carstens continued with a layup. Next was a layup from freshman guard Kaylee Borden and a jumper from freshman Hannah Hartley. Nevada won the game 80-42.

The Nevada women’s basketball team continues to impress as they demonstrate they can win close games as well as absolutely run teams off the floor. The offense continues to look like a well-oiled machine with another 80 point performance. There were a plethora of points throughout the Wolf Pack roster, and there were a lot of assists in this game which were a welcomed sight. The Nevada defense once again continues to show they are a skilled group, eclipsing 20 steals this game. 

This hot Nevada basketball team will look to keep their winning streak going as they play in the Husky classic. They play their first game against Eastern Washington at the University of Washington on Dec. 19.