It was a week of highs and heartbreak for MSU women’s basketball. The No. 3 Bobcats (16-9, 8-5 BSC) had “ping pong play” in their final homestand of the season, according to head coach Tricia Binford, defeating Northern Colo. but losing on a last-second shot to Sacramento St. over the weekend.

The Cats played strong against the No. 7 Sacramento St. Hornets (9-17, 4-9), and were on top at halftime. The lead changed 18 times, and the Cats led 76-75 in the final minute. Sacramento St. guard Fantasia Hilliard went coast to coast in the final 5.7 seconds and made a basket at the buzzer to put the Hornets on top, defeating the Cats 77-76.  

Before the game, the last home game of the year, the Bobcats honored guard Katie Bussey as the lone senior for the Cats. Bussey only needed two 3-pointers to overtake Chelsea Warburton — who played for Weber St. from 2004-2007 — as the leader in career 3-pointers in the Big Sky Conference. She scored just one 3-pointer during the game, tying the record.

Bussey finished the game with 20 points for the Bobcats, and center Rachel Semansky had 19 points and nine rebounds, on 8-9 shooting.

“Despite the loss, we hold third place in the standings and have three away games left before heading into the Big Sky Tournament. With a conference berth secured and the parity of the conference tight, we are hopeful to make a splash the next four weeks,” Binford said.

Earlier in the week, the Bobcats began their final homestand by playing the No. 4 Northern Colo. Bears (15-10, 7-5). Bussey led the way for the Cats with nine points in the first half, for a total of 23. The Cats shot 87.5 percent from the free throw line and won the game 58-50.

Bobcat Men Lose on the Road

The No. 5 men (11-13, 6-7) had a disappointing week, losing back-to-back away games, playing No. 8 Sacramento St. (9-15, 4-9) on Feb. 9, and Northern Colo. (8-16, 5-8) on Feb. 11. The score against the Hornets was 76-86, and the Cats lost 64-77 in overtime against the No. 7 Bears.

The next men’s home game is on Feb. 27 against Northern Arizona. Tip-off is at 7 p.m.