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The Storyline
The LMU women's basketball team enters the West Coast Conference Tournament as the number five seed. The Lions jumped into the fifth position with a Senior Day win over Pacific and now faces a San Francisco team that has won the last nine meetings between the schools.
Last Time Out
Loyola Marymount never led at University of San Francisco, despite four Lions scoring in double-figures and the team committing just nine turnovers. San Francisco used 31 made free throws to defeat LMU, 89-73.
The Dons started the game with two three pointers before Leslie Lopez-Wood buried a triple of her own. The senior finished with a team-high 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting and 4-of-6 from long range.
The game's lone tie score came at 8-8 after Cierra Belvin capped a 5-0 run with a three with 4:44 remaining in the first quarter. USF closed out the quarter on a 12-3 run to lead 20-11 after one.
The home team pushed their lead to as high as 15 points twice in the second quarter and took a 12-point advantage into the half.
Despite LMU taking the third quarter, 22-21, they could not cut into the USF lead in the fourth.
Jackie Johnson (15), Cheyanne Wallace (14), and Andee Velasco (12) joined Lopez-Wood in double figures. This was just the second time this season that four Lions finished in double-digits in a single game, with the same four hitting the mark in the West Coast Conference win against San Diego on Feb. 2.
Wallace added 10 rebounds to record her fourth double-double of the season.
Double Trouble
Jackie Johnson nears averaging a double-double with 17.5 points and 9.2 rebounds per contest. Johnson has posted 11 double-doubles on the season, including a 19 point and 12 rebound performance last week against Saint Mary's.
Carrying The Load
Jackie Johnson leads the WCC in blocks (83), blocked shots per game (2.9), and ranks second in rebounds (267) and in rebounds per game (9.2).
Dropping Dimes
Andee Velasco leads the WCC in assists (174) and in assists per game (6.0). Velasco posted two career-highs in back-to-back games this season 11 assists in Thursday's win against Saint Mary's (Feb. 16) and a program-record 13 assists in the rivalry win at Pepperdine (Feb. 18), breaking Hazel Ramirez's mark of 12.
Leading Legends
Leslie Lopez-Wood ranks 14th among active Division I 3-point scoring leaders with 268 career makes.
Climbing The Ladder
Leslie Lopez-Wood ranks seventh all-time with 1349 career points. The senior needs 19 points to surpass Hazel Ramirez '14 to move into sole possession of sixth place all-time. Lopez-Wood is also the first Lion in program history to have four seasons of 55+ made threes.
Spectacular Season
Jackie Johnson's 507 points this season is the third-most single season output in program history. Johnson is 20 points away from moving into second on the all-time list, passing Alex Cowling's 526 in 2009-10.
Sharing The Rock
LMU ranks first in the WCC in assists (464) and assists per game (15.9).
Hank's House
LMU is 9-6 at Gersten Pavilion this season, the program's 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, while Johnson's career-high 31 points against Pepperdine was her eighth 20-plus game of the season and 12th 30-plus performance in LMU history. Johnson tied the school record with 14 made field goals in the contest.
Triple Threat
LMU is 7-5 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 264 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
The Dons have a pair of all-conference performers in senior guard Rachel Howard and junior guard Anna Seilund. First Team All-WCC selection Howard is the two-time reigning West Coast Conference Player of the Week and finished the season averaging 20.8 points per game in conference play. Additionally, she leads the WCC in three-pointers made (51) and three-point percentage (46.4) in conference play and ranked among the top-10 in assists (4.7), field goal percentage (44.4) and free throw percentage (83.2).
The Series
USF has held the upper hand of late, winning nine straight over the Lions. LMU will look to buck the trend and advance to the semi-finals of the WCC Tournament.
Up Next
The Lions will play in the WCC Tournament in Las Vegas. Game times will be determined based on final seedings.
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.
2017 WCC All-Conference Team
he West Coast Conference announced its women's basketball All-WCC teams and specialty awards on Tuesday, Feb. 28. Jackie Johnson represented Loyola Marymount on the first team, and Leslie Lopez-Wood and Cheyanne Wallace were named to the Honorable Mention Team. Additionally, Johnson was named WCC Newcomer of the Year for her play as a transfer senior.
Johnson is LMU's 29th First-Team All-WCC selection and the sixth Lion to earn Newcomer of the Year honors. The senior transfer is averaging 17.5 points per game, 9.2 rebounds per game, and 2.9 blocks per game, leading the team in all three categories and top three in the conference as well.
Lopez-Wood has hit 57 three pointers this season, and is the first Lion in program history to hit that mark in each of her four seasons. Lopez-Wood is averaging 12.0 points per game this season and shooting 38.2 percent from the floor, her second highest marks of her career only behind her sophomore year in 2014-15 when she was also recognized as an All-WCC Honorable Mention performer.
As a sophomore, Wallace has improved her numbers across the board from what was an impressive freshman campaign where she was named to the conference's All-Freshman team last season. Wallace gives the Lions 12.4 points per game, 7.2 rebounds per game, and is shooting 38.7 percent from the field.
WCC Tournament Schedule
Thursday, March 2
No. 8 Pepperdine vs. No. 9 Pacific, 12:00 p.m. (BYUtv, TheW.tv)
No. 7 San Diego vs. No. 10 Portland, 2:00 p.m. (BYUtv, TheW.tv)
No. 3 Saint Mary's vs. No. 6 Santa Clara, 6:00 p.m. (BYUtv, TheW.tv)
No. 4 San Francisco vs. No. 5 Loyola Marymount, 8:00 p.m. (BYUtv, TheW.tv)
Friday, March 3
No. 1 Gonzaga vs. No. 8/9, 12:00 p.m. (BYUtv, TheW.tv, Twitter)
No. 2 BYU vs. No. 7/10, 2:00 p.m. (BYUtv, TheW.tv, Twitter)
Monday, March 6
Women's Semifinal No. 1, 12:00 p.m. (BYUtv, TheW.tv, Twitter)
Women's Semifinal No. 2, 2:00 p.m. (BYUtv, TheW.tv, Twitter)
Tuesday, March 7
Women's Championship Game, 1:00 p.m. (ESPNU, WatchESPN)
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