LAS VEGAS - No. 9 seed Washington State jumped out to a big lead and then held off a fiesty second-half comeback by No. 8 Pacific and won, 82-76 in the second round of the Credit Union 1 West Coast Conference Women's Basketball Championship from Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. 

With the victory, the Cougars advance to play No. 5 seed Portland tomorrow at noon. 

Eleonora Villa stood out once again for Washington State with 22 points, seven assists, a team best. Mackenzie Chatfield contributed 12 points and five assists. Charlotte Abraham connected on three treys and grabbed four rebounds. 

WSU held Pacific to 18 points in the first half, taking a 19-point lead into halftime. 

The Cougars shot over 50 percent from the field in the first quarter, including 16 of its 19 points in the paint. They also capitalized on five Tiger turnvoers. 

WSU continued to limit Pacific scoring chances while being effective on the offensive side to go up by 19 at the break. 

Seven WSU turnovers in the third quarter allowed the Tigers to slowly start to climb back into the contest. A frantic fourth-quarter comeback by Pacific in the fourth quarter put the Tigers in range for a late comeback, but the Cougars were able to ice the game with efficient free throw shooting.

Sydney Ward led Pacific with 21 points, including 10 in the paint, and 10 rebounds to secure a double-double. She connected on 8 of 11 free throw attempts. Daria Nestorov scored 20 points with two steals and three assists.