LAS VEGAS, Nev. – On Friday at noon, the Pacific women's basketball team will tip off against ninth seed Washington State in the second round of the West Coast Conference tournament at the Orleans Arena.

Earlier in the season, the Tigers rode a strong second half effort to beat Washington State (8-24, 6-12 WCC) in January, led by sophomore Daria Nestorov's 15 points. Senior Sydney Ward also was a standout performer, finishing one rebound shy of a double-double with 12 points and nine rebounds.

Since that matchup, the pair have gone on to become two of the linchpins of the Pacific (11-18, 6-12 WCC) offense over the past month averaging 12.0 and 13.1 points per game respectively. Nestorov particularly is a player to watch as, in addition to her scoring, the Serbian is climbing Pacific's single season assist leader charts. Entering the tournament, she sits in 15th place with 144 assists meaning that if she hits her season average of five assists per game, she will move up to 13th place.

If the Tigers continue to advance through the tournament Nestorov could crack the top-10 as she is currently 11 assists away from tying that number ten spot. Of the current top-10, Head Coach Bradley Davis has coached three of those entrants.

Should Ward grab five rebounds during Friday's contest she will reach a season 200, making her the second Tiger this decade to reach the 200-board threshold.

Meanwhile, Davis is looking for his fourth straight appearance in the quarterfinals or better as last season he reached the quarterfinals, where Pacific was bested by WSU, and the two seasons before that reached the semifinal rounds.

For Pacific to win, the three-pointer will be a key to watch. During February the team was the fourth best shooting team in the WCC while Washington State was the worst team at defending the three-pointer, allowing 37%.

True freshman Sophia Mindermann already has hit the most three-pointers by a Tiger this decade with 60 and ranks 17th in program single season threes.

Tomorrow's game will be streamed on ESPN+. If the Tigers win, they will face sixth seeded Portland on Saturday at noon – which will also be shown on ESPN+.

Tigers Tickets
Tickets for upcoming events can be purchased through the PacificTigers.com tickets tab, or by calling the Box Office at 209-946-2474.  Groups of 10 or more are eligible for a group discount and exclusive fan experiences.

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