LOS ANGELES – On Saturday afternoon, the Lions secured an 80-71 victory against the Pacific Tigers, bringing an end to their five-game losing streak.
 
"Really proud of our group today. Clearly, when you go for 12-29 from the three-point line, some good things are going to happen," says head coach Aarika Hughes. "This is not a Coach A win; this is LMU making a collective decision to fight and fight for 40 minutes."
 
Every member of the Lions roster played a part in achieving the 80-point outcome, with an additional 27 points contributed by the bench in today's game.
 
Nicole Rodriguez hit a new career high with 22 points, finishing the game 8-18 from the field and 5-11 from the three-point line. "Nic is a kid that stays ready, so she doesn't have to get ready," says Hughes. When it's time for her to step up, we know her training will override everything else."
 
Alexis Mark also had an incredible game, finishing with 22 points, and led the team with seven rebounds. "When you have Alexis and Nicole, and they don't think and just flow, they are unbelievable scorers for us, and that's what we saw today, " says Hughes. 
 
Sydney Gandy also dished out dime passes, with eight assistants and only one turnover. "Sydney Gandy, for the last two games, has been distributing the basketball on time, to the right people, and making plays," said Hughes.
 
There was a lot of going back and forth between the two teams until the Tigers made a layup and knocked down two free throws, giving them the four-point edge. The Lions would turn up the heat when Alex Mark made a second chance layup. After Mark's layup, the Lions went on a 14-0 run, putting them back on top and beating Pacific by 10, 19-9.
 
The second quarter started a little slow but turned up when Amelie Sitterud and Rodriguez drained back-to-back three-pointers. Ella Wedin chipped in a three-pointer as well. The Lions were 6-12 from the arc this quarter, which kept them in the lead going into halftime, 40-27.
 
At the end of the first half, Rodriguez already had 14 points.
 
Starting the third quarter, Mark came out hot, scoring the first five points. She had a perfect quarter, scoring 12 of the Lions 22 points, shooting 5-5 from the field and 2-2 from the arc. At one point, LMU was up 24 points over Pacific. This was one of the Lions best shooting quarters this season, finishing the quarter shooting 53.3 percent. 
 
Although the Tigers made a comeback in the fourth quarter, the Lions held their ground with clutch free throws, ultimately securing the victory at 80-71.
 
The Lions next game is Thursday, Feb. 29, against the Santa Clara Broncos in Santa Clara, CA.