Allyson Sievers

PORTLAND, Ore. --- Santa Clara’s Chandice Cronk hit the game-winning three-pointer with five seconds remaining to hand the Broncos a 61-58 win in a West Coast Conference women’s basketball game Wednesday night at the Chiles Center. Portland’s Laiken Dollente had a chance to tie it with a three-pointer at the buzzer, but her rushed attempt from the right side was long.

Cronk hit three three-pointers in the final 2:30 to help the Broncos move to 16-4 (5-1 WCC) on the season.

Portland, which drops to 12-9 overall and to 2-4 in the conference, seemingly took control of the game after a traditional three-point play by senior center Rachel Warren gave the Pilots a 56-51 lead with 2:42 showing on the clock. With Portland up two, junior wing Karlie Burris fed Warren, who finished down low while getting hacked. She would hit the free throw to give the Pilots the five-point advantage.

Cronk then caught fire and hit back-to-back three’s to give SCU a one-point lead with 90 seconds left. A few possessions later, Santa Clara’s Tracey Walker hit one of two free throws to make it 58-56 in the Broncos favor with 47 ticks on the clock.

At the other end, Santa Clara knocked Dollente to the ground, sending the Yakima, Wash., native to line for a pair of free throws. Dollente, who entered the game with the third-best free throw percentage in the nation, hit both attempts to tie the game with 28 seconds remaining.

The Broncos then ran down the clock before Cronk hit the huge three-pointer, just out of the reach of Warren’s out-stretched arm.

Portland sophomore Kendra Morris then raced up the court to feed Dollente, who just did get off her three-point attempt as the final horn sounded.

Dollente, who has hit 35 of her last 36 attempts from the line, hit all four of her free throw attempts, improving her season percentage to 91 percent. She finished the night with 13 points.

Junior forward Allyson Sievers nearly recorded her second career double-double for the Pilots, finishing with 17 points and eight rebounds. Warren also notched double digits in scoring with 10 points.

Santa Clara, which leads the WCC in three-point shooting, hit seven treys on the night, led by Cronk’s three. Cronk scored a game-high 25 points, while Jen Gottschalk added 14 points and eight boards.

The Broncos shot 42 percent (24-for-57) overall for the game, while the Pilots shook off some early shooting struggles to finish at 38 percent (21-for-56) on the night. Portland hit just one three-pointer and went 15-for-20 from the line.

Portland owned a 39-32 advantage in boards and outscored SCU 16-4 on second chance points. But the aggressive Broncos had 12 fast break points to the Pilots’ zero.

The two teams were never separated by more than four points in the first half, which finished in a 27-27 tie.

The loss leaves UP head coach Jim Sollars still one win shy of setting the new WCC wins mark. With 129 career WCC victories in 20-plus years of league play, Sollars is tied with former San Francisco head coach Mary Hile-Nepfel for first place on the all-time list.

Sollars and the Pilots will get another chance for the win against Saint Mary’s on Saturday, when the Gaels visit the Chiles Center for a 1:00 p.m. game.