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LOS ANGELES - Turnovers plagued the LMU women's basketball team in the first half and a big run midway through the second half was not enough to overcome a hot-shooting San Francisco team as the Lions fell 74-65 Saturday afternoon.
Leslie Lopez-Wood led the Lions (3-17, 1-8 WCC) for the second straight game, finishing with 20 points. Emily Ben-Jumbo added 11 points while Bree Alford pulled down a career-best and game-high 13 rebounds. LMU shot 37 percent from the field for the game and 33 percent from three.
San Francisco (13-7, 4-5 WCC) was led by Taylor Proctor's 21 points and 11 boards. Zhane Dikes had 16 points and Taj Winston added 12 for the Dons who hit nearly 53 percent from the field and 43 percent from beyond the arc.
With the Lions leading 6-4 early, USF went on an 11-0 run to open up a 15-6 advantage with 13:14 remaining in the half. LMU slowly chipped away as a pair of foul shots by Olivia Lucero and a Ben-Jumbo layup trimmed the spread to five, 15-10. Hashima Carothers knocked down a jumper, but Taylor would respond with a pair of buckets and Ben-Jumbo added another layup in the paint to bring the Lions within one, 17-16, with 8:47 to go.
San Francisco used a late run to push the lead to double-digits, 27-19 and would take a 33-25 advantage into the break. LMU hit 40 percent from the field in the first half, but committed 12 costly turnovers that the Dons turned into 12 points.
Four Anderson free throws and a Lopez-Wood three would help LMU to within three, 35-32, just two-and-a-half minutes into the second half.
The Dons would stretch their lead back out to double digits, 56-44, with 8:25 to go, but LMU had another streak in them. Two Lopez-Wood threes and layups by Alford and Taylor made it a two-point game, 56-54.
The Lions would get no closer than four down the stretch, however, as San Francisco continued its hot shooting for the balance of the game while also hitting 7-of-8 from the charity stripe in the final minute of play.
LMU's four-game home stand continues Thursday, Jan. 29 with a 7 p.m. tilt against WCC rival Saint Mary's. Fans in attendance who buy a $1 raffle ticket will be entered to win a Super Bowl party at Dave & Busters, courtesy of LMU Athletics.
All proceeds will go to benefit the Kay Yow Cancer Fund as the Lions gear up for Breast Cancer Awareness Month and their Play4Kay game on Feb. 14 versus Portland. Visit LMULions.com to donate today!
