Feb. 19, 2005
Box Score
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - The LMU women's basketball team went on a 13-0 run during an eight minute stretch in the second half to secure a 63-52 win over Santa Clara in WCC action this afternoon at Gersten Pavilion. The Lions went on a 19-2 run over the final 9:11 of the game, coming back from a six point deficit to send their three seniors out with a win at Gersten Pavilion. The win moves LMU (14-12) back into second place in the WCC with an 8-5 record. Santa Clara (13-12) drops to third with a 7-5 conference record.
SCU senior Quinn Thomas hit a three-pointer to open the scoring, but the Lions scored the next seven points to take a 7-3 lead on a layup by Valerie Ogoke. The Broncos hit two baskets to take the 8-7 lead. LMU responded by hitting four free throws to take back to the lead, 11-10. Bianca Ziemann's jumper gave LMU a three point lead, but the Brocos would tie it again on Kayla Huss' three pointer. After an Ogoke layup, Huss hit another three pointer to give SCU the 18-17 lead at 8:00.
After Huss hit two free throws to give the Broncos a 20-19 lead, the Lions went on an 8-0 run that included two three pointers by Rachael Ziemann and a pair of free throws by Amanda DeCoud to take a 27-20 lead. Chandice Crunk's free throws stopped the LMU run, but Mary Turner made a jumper to extend the lead back to seven. The Broncos cut the LMU lead to four at the halftime break, 30-26.
Huss led all scorers in the first half with 10 points, while Rachael Ziemann led LMU with nine points. Neither team shot well, as LMU made 32.3% of its shots, and SCU made 34.8% of its attempts. The score was tied three times in the first 20 minutes, and the lead changed hands seven times.
The Broncos came out of the locker room hot, and tied the game, 36-36, at 15:40 on a three pointer by Anna Martin. Two threes by Martin, a layup by Thomas and a jumper by Huss gave Santa Clara a 46-38 lead at 13:33.
Jacquelyn Woods' play was crucial to LMU's comeback. The senior forward's layup at 11:57 stopped the SCU run, and over the next minutes of play, she recorded six points, two steals, and four rebounds to help the Lions come back. At 5:26, she stole the ball from Huss, and drove the length of the court for a layup that tied the game at 50-50.
LMU would go on a 7-0 run over the next four minutes, keyed by a Rachael Ziemann three-pointer to take a 57-50 lead with 1:35 remaining in the game. The LMU defense held the Broncos to just two points in the final 9:11 of the game, outscoring SCU 19-2 to close out the game.
Rachael Ziemann led all scorers with 18 points. Woods recorded her fifth double double of the season, and her second one this year against Santa Clara. She finished with 14 points, 10 rebounds, and three steals in just 17 minutes of play. Turner and DeCoud added nine points for LMU.
Huss led SCU with 14 points, and Thomas added 10. Tracey Walker led the Broncos in rebounding with seven.
Santa Clara came into the game with the highest scoring offense in the conference and was limited to 52 points. In the two games that they teams played this season, SCU averaged just 53 points per game. The Broncos shot just 33.3% from the field for the game. The Lions made 40.7% of their shots in the second half to improve their shooting percentage in the game to 36.2%.
Before the game, LMU's three senior players, plus manager Maria Lipscombe and radio broadcaster Patrick Duggan, were honored in a ceremony. All three seniors started, and Jennifer Henry added to her block total for the season with the team's only block of the game.
As always, the conference standings will come down to the final weekend. The Lions will head to Pepperdine on Saturday at 4:30pm for another crucial WCC matchup. The WCC Tournament seedings will be announced on Sunday, February 27th.
-GO LIONS-
