March 21, 2004
Albuquerque, New Mexico - After pulling within four points with just under four and a half minutes left to play, Loyola Marymount women's basketball could not hold onto its comeback run against Baylor in the first round of the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship. The Lions dropped the Midwest region match-up 71-60 at The Pit on the campus of the University of New Mexico Saturday night.
The Lions cut a 12-point second half lead to just four in five minutes, led by Rachael Ziemann's seven points during the run.
Starting the first half with the usual five, LMU stayed with Baylor's early attack, led by Kate Murray, who had four points in less than five minutes of play.
Mary Turner then turned it on for the Lions, hitting two long shots, one of which she had cleared the arc on for three points.
As the 12-minute mark passed in the first, senior Adrianne Slaughter found Murray cutting inside to bring the Lions within six. With the lay-up, the senior set a new single-season scoring record for the Lions. Murray broke the previous 13-year record held by Assistant Coach Lynn Flanagan, who scored 469 points during the 1990-91 season.
Less than a minute later, Slaughter hustled down court to swat a shot from behind for one of her two first half blocks.
Despite the milestone half for LMU, Baylor challenged the Lions inside, scoring 18 points in the paint in the first. But LMU's defense forced three Baylor turnovers in the first, and the Lions scored on each one for six points off turnovers.
Baylor led at halftime 37-25, but it was Murray who led all scorers with 14 points.
Though the Bears worked up to as much as a 12 point lead in the second, the Lions went on a run that would bring them within four with four and a half minutes to play. Sophomore Rachael Ziemann led the scoring run for the Lions, scoring seven points in four minutes.
Baylor pushed its lead back to seven when Sophia Young completed a three-point play with just under three and a half minutes remaining. Despite the Lions' fifteen game winning streak, the Bears held onto the 71-60 victory, thanks in part to a 13-for-16 second half free throw performance. The loss is LMU's first since losing its West Coast Conference opener to Gonzaga on January 10, 2004.
Murray, who ended the game with 27 points, set the new LMU single-season scoring record at 492 points. With four three point field goals made in the game, the senior also tied the single-season mark for three-pointers made in a season with 48. The four three-pointers Saturday night also equaled Murray's career game high.
The first NCAA Women's Basketball Championship appearance for LMU also marked the program's first nationally televised game, as the contest aired on ESPN2. With a 9:50 p.m. MST tip-off on Saturday, the game was the latest of all men and women's NCAA tournament tips.
Saturday's attendance of 16,029 is the third-largest all-time for a first/second round NCAA Women's Basketball Championship game overall and in the Midwest Region. UNM's University Arena/The Pit holds the top three spots in first-round attendance, with a record of 16,214 set last March. LMU's game against Baylor followed the UNM/Florida contest, which the Gators won 68-56.
"Although we leave here disappointed, we leave here encouraged and motivated by the play of our team in the second half and the players' will to come back and stick with it and not give up," Head Coach Julie Wilhoit said. "We really executed what I would call LMU basketball during the second half, particularly on defense."
-GO LIONS-
