Feb. 21, 2017 The Storyline
The LMU women's basketball team is coming off an impressive week with wins over Saint Mary's and PCH Cup rival Pepperdine.
Last Time Out
he Loyola Marymount women's basketball team scored a season-high 87 points to top PCH Cup rival Pepperdine Saturday afternoon. Despite trailing entering the fourth quarter, LMU outscored the waves by 12 to earn the 87-78 victory and complete the season sweep.
LMU benefited from Jackie Johnson's 31 points on 14-for-20 shooting, as well as a pair of late runs to erase a nine-point deficit with 1:45 remaining in the third.
Bianca Velasco and Leslie Lopez-Wood hit back-to-back threes on LMU's final two possessions of the third quarter to make it a three-point game, 61-58, going into the final period. The run continued and into the start of the fourth and turned into a 14-0 run that gave LMU a five-point lead with 7:31 remaining in the game.
The Lions put together another 10-0 run over 2:55 in the fourth to change a one-point deficit into a nine-point lead, 80-71. A pair of Cheyanne Wallace jumpers highlighted the stretch, with the sophomore finishing with 23 points.
Double Trouble
Jackie Johnson nears averaging a double-double with 17.5 points and 9.4 rebounds per contest. Johnson has posted 11 double-doubles on the season, including a 19 point and 12 rebound performance against Saint Mary's
Carrying The Load
Jackie Johnson leads the WCC in blocks (79), blocked shots per game (2.9), and ranks second in rebounds (255) and in rebounds per game (9.4).
Dropping Dimes
Andee Velasco leads the WCC in assists (163) and in assists per game (6.0). Velasco posted two career-highs last week: 11 assists in Thursday's win against Saint Mary's and 13 assists in Saturday's win at Pepperdine.
Leading Legends
Leslie Lopez-Wood ranks 17th among active Division I 3-point scoring leaders with 262 career makes.
Climbing The Ladder
Leslie Lopez-Wood ranks ninth all-time with 1318 career points. The senior needs 50 points to surpass Hazel Ramirez '14 to move into sole possession of sixth place all-time.
Sharing The Rock
LMU ranks first in the WCC in assists (433) and assists per game (16.0).
Hanks House
LMU is 7-6 at Gersten Pavilion this season. With one more win, LMU will secure its first winning record at home since the 2012-13 season.
I'll Take That
LMU has scored at least 20 points off of turnovers six times this season and have accomplished the feat three times in the past eight games. The Lions notched a season-high 32 points off turnovers in the win over Saint Mary's.
Light It Up
Cheyanne Wallace's 23 points against Pepperdine on Feb. 18 marked her tenth 20-plus point game of her career, whlie Johnson's career-high 31 points against Pepperdine was her eighth 20-plus game of the season and first 30-plus.
Triple Threat
LMU is 7-4 when Leslie Lopez-Wood, Jackie Johnson and Cheyanne Wallace all score in double figures. At least one member of the trio has notched double-digit scoring in every game.
From Downtown
Leslie Lopez-Wood broke the all-time 3-point career record a season ago and holds 262 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.
WCC Honors
Jackie Johnson was named the WCC Player of the Week for the week of Dec. 4, Jan. 30 and Feb. 6. Johnson became the first player in program history to earn back-to-back WCC Player of the Week nods in a season, and joined Kate Murray '04 as the only players in program history to earn the honors thrice in a season.
Booking It
Leslie Lopez-Wood matched her own single-game record of seven 3-pointers against Long Beach State Dec. 10. Lopez-Wood matched the program single-game record last season with seven triples Feb. 21, 2016 at Santa Clara, joining three former Lions who hold the tie for the top spot. Lopez-Wood's 7-for-9 performance marked the second-highest shooting percentage from beyond-the-arc behind Amanda Patton, who hit on 7-of-8 against Long Beach State Dec. 17, 2005.
Boarding Up
Jackie Johnson's 18 rebounds at Cal State Fullerton and Pacific marked the third highest single-game total and first 18-rebound performances since Camille Buckely grabbed the total against Portland Jan. 13, 2011.
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 Friday, 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.
Scouting San Francisco
San Francisco is coming off a stellar shooting night, hitting a season-best 15 three pointers on only 24 attempts. The Dons pulled away in the fourth quarter to defeat Portland after shooting 5-of-7 from long range in the final period. USF senior guard Rachel Howard was named WCC Player of the Week for her 23-point performance against Gonzaga and 19 against the Pilots.
The Series
USF has held the upper-hand in this series over the last few matchups, winning eight straight.
Up Next
The Lions will close the regular season at Gersten Pavilion against Pacific on Feb. 25. LMU will recognize its three seniors, Shelbi Aimonetti, Jackie Johnson, and Leslie Lopez-Wood.
Inside The Lions
Charity Elliott is in her fifth year at the helm of the program. The 2016-17 squad features three seniors as Shelbi Aimonetti and Leslie Lopez-Wood return to the court, while Jackie Johnson will make her debut as a Lion after sitting out due to transfer rules.
Bree Alford, who lead the team with 116 rebounds a season ago, and Makenzie Cast round out the returning juniors, while an experienced sophomore class returns. Cheyanne Wallace, All-WCC freshman team selection, is the Lions leading returning scorer after averaging 11.2 points per game in her rookie season.
Fellow sophomore Andee Velasco also posted double digit scoring figures with 10.5 ppg, while Bianca Velasco and NK Ilang were key players off the bench.
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.
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 eighth spot. Pepperdine and Portland finished in a tie for ninth with 13 points apiece.
2017 WCC Championships Return to Vegas
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.
2017 WCC All-Academic Team
The 2017 West Coast Conference All-Academic team was announced on Feb. 21. Jackie Johnson was named to the 10-member team, with Shelbi Aimonetti, Andee Velasco, and Cheyanne Wallace each earning honorable mention recognition.
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