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LOS ANGELES - The LMU women's basketball team will close out non-conference play at Gersten Pavilion on Saturday, Dec. 17 at 1 p.m. against UC Riverside.

Alumni Family Day
Saturday's game will be the first of an Alumni Family Day doubleheader, as the men's team will close out the action at 4 p.m. against Incarnate Wood. A pregame tailgate will start at noon in the Burns Recreation Center parklng lot and continue until the start of the men's game. For more information and tickets, visit lmulions.com.

Last Time Out
Despite overcoming an 11-point deficit in the third quarter, LMU battled back only to fall short in overtime, 81-78, to Long Beach State Saturday afternoon at Gersten Pavilion.

Jackie Johnson notched a career-high 25 points to go with eight rebounds. Leslie Lopez-Wood matched a career-best with seven 3-pointers for 21 points, while Cheyanne Wallace outputted 19 points and hauled down eight rebounds.

The Lions trailed by 11 points in the third quarter before a 19-4 run put them back in the game at 55-55, and the score remained tied at 71-71 at the end of regulation. Long Beach State pulled away in overtime, capitalizing on three LMU turnovers over the final minutes to escape with the victory.

Recap: Women's Basketball Falls to Long Beach State in OT, 81-78 WCC Honors
Jackie Johnson was named the WCC Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 4. The senior guided LMU to a 3-0 week, notching double-digit scoring figures in all three contests, while posting double-doubles against UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Fullerton. Johnson leads the conference with six double-doubles.

Related Link: Johnson Named WCC Player of the Week

Double Trouble
Jackie Johnson is the only player in the WCC who is currently averaging a double-double per game with 15.7 points and 11.1 rebounds per contest.

Carrying the Load
Jackie Johnson leads the WCC in rebounds per game (11.1), blocked shots (2.7) and ranks second in steals (2.3).

Dynamic Duo
Jackie Johnson and Cheyanne Wallace currently rank third and sixth in the WCC with 15.7 and 14.4 points per game. BYU is the only other team in the conference to have two student-athletes rank within the top 10 in scoring average.

Dropping Dimes
Andee Velasco leads the WCC in assists (56) and assists per game (5.6).

Leading Legends
Leslie Lopez-Wood ranks 12th among active Division I 3-point scoring leaders with 231 career makes and ranks 18th with 639 career attempts.

Lockdown
LMU currently ranks first in the WCC in field goal percentage defense (.362).

The Edge
LMU's back-to-back wins over Seattle (62-59) and UCSB (57-55) marked the first time since the 2011-12 season when the Lions earned two straight wins decided by one-possession. Previously, the Lions came away on top with two straight 57-54 decisions over Youngstown State Nov. 25 and New Mexico Dec. 1.

Locking the Lid
The Lions surrendered just three points against UC Irvine in the first quarter in a 58-39 win in its opening game of the LMU Thanksgiving Classic on Nov. 25, setting a new program record for fewest points allowed in a quarter, besting its mark of allowing just eight points a season ago against the Anteaters on Nov. 28, 2015. LMU'S 39 points allowed in the game marked its lowest opponent total since a 65-39 win over Jackson State Nov. 11, 2007.

Light it Up
Cheyanne Wallace's 20 points against San Diego State on Nov. 20 marked her sixth 20-plus point game of her career. Wallace also notched a career-high 26 points against Saint Louis on Nov. 13.

From Downtown
Leslie Lopez-Wood broke the all-time 3-point career record a season ago and holds 231 to her name. The senior has lead the Lions in triples in each of her three seasons, and also set the single season mark with 82 makes from beyond-the-arc a season ago.

Scouting UC Riverside
The Highlanders are coming off a 71-66 victory over CSU Baskersfield Wednesday night to improve to 4-3 on the season.

Rejane Verin leads the team in scoring with 16.7 points per game, good for second among Big West leaders. Simon DeCoud and Lauren Holt also average double-digits with 12.0 and 10.0 points per game, respectively.

John Margaritis is in his 13th season at the helm of the Highlanders and owns a 188-187 career mark at UC Riverside and is just two wins away from his 300th career victory as a head coach.

The Series
LMU trails 3-6 in the all-time series, with two of its victories coming in the past four matchups. The Lions last victory over the Highlanders came in an 82-66 decision on Dec. 5, 2003.

Up Next
LMU will open WCC play at Saint Mary's on Thursday, Dec. 29 and follow on Saturday, Dec. 31 at BYU.

Preseason Predictions
LMU was predicted to finish sixth overall in the WCC women's basketball preseason poll, as voted on by the league's 10 head coaches.

Related Link: Women's Basketball Selected Sixth in WCC Preseason Poll

Gonzaga edged BYU for the top spot by one point, earning 76 points and five first-place votes. The Cougars received four first-place votes and Saint Mary's nabbed the final first-place vote and 66 overall points. San Diego (58) and Santa Clara (44) checked in ahead of LMU (36), who earned its highest ranking since 2013, when it was also selected to finish sixth.

Defending WCC tournament champion San Francisco was narrowed by the Lions by one point to hold the seventh spot, while it beat out Pacific by a one-point margin as the Tigers penned the eight spot. Pepperdine and Portland finished in a tie for ninth with 13 points apiece.

2017 WCC Championships
The 2017 West Coast Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships return to the bright lights of Las Vegas and Orleans Arena on March 2 through March 7 as 20 teams battle for two spots in the NCAA Tournament. Visit WCCSports.com today for complete championship and ticket information.

2016-17 Basketball Tickets on Sale!
This season, LMU continues its partnership with TicketsWest! Individual game, special promotional, and season tickets to the 2016-17 LMU basketball season are on sale NOW through the online ticketing system and all events can be done through LMULions.com.