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For Lions, 12 Times 3 Equals 5
Dec. 3, 2008
San Luis Obispo, CA - LMU tied the school record with 12 three-pointers for its fifth straight win, 86-77 against Cal Poly on Wednesday night at Mott Gymnasium in San Luis Obispo, CA. The Lions (6-1) shot 50% from the floor for the first time in nearly two years to post its fourth consecutive victory over the Mustangs (4-3), who snap their two-game winning streak. LMU never trailed in the game but needed hot long-range shooting early and cool nerves at the free throw line late to hold off the Mustangs. The Lions went 12-for-24 from three-point range, equaling the school record set in 2003 against UC Riverside. The Lions had previously hit 11 earlier this year against Arizona. Junior Lisa Helmers led the long-range onslaught, tying her career-high with six threes on her way to a game-high 22 points. Sophomore Renahy Young added 19 points, 16 in the second half, and junior Kavita Goss came off the bench for 15. Senior Cassady Moore was the fourth Lion in double figures with 10 as every LMU player who saw the court scored. LMU went 30-of-60 from the field to finish at 50% for the first time since February 1, 2007 at Portland. The Lions also went 14-for-20 (70%) from the free throw line, with all of their attempts coming in the second half, and held a 41-37 rebounding advantage. The Mustangs also had four players in double figures, paced by 18 from Megan Harrison. Lisa McBride had 15 points, seven rebounds, and six assists and Kristina Santiago and Rachel Clancy each chipped in 14. Cal Poly was no slouch from three-point range, either, hitting 10-of-21 (47.6%) while shooting 41.4% (29-for-70) overall.
The Lions showed no nerves on their first venture into another team's arena this season, knocking down their first four shots and jumping out to a 10-0 lead that forced a Poly timeout just 1:52 into the game. Helmers hit two threes in the opening spurt and Moore and Evans each added two baskets as the lead grew to 14-2 thanks to four Mustang turnovers. After hitting six of their first eight from the floor, the Lions went cold, however, missing their next five shots as Cal Poly started to chip into the lead. A Brittany Asplund three-pointer capped an 8-0 run that pulled the home side back to 14-10 before a layup from freshman Alex Cowling put an end to the spurt. LMU quickly restored its double-digit lead thanks to the 3-ball, with Goss knocking down two and Cowling hitting a third in a span of three minutes to put LMU back up 27-14. The Lions were getting production up and down the lineup, as freshman Lauren Wilkins stepped off the bench for LMU's sixth three-pointer of the half to become the seventh of eight players to score. Ironically, leading scorer Young was the only LMU player not to have gotten on the scoresheet but she put an end to that just before halftime, connecting on a three from the corner. But Cal Poly would not go away. The Mustangs continually pounded the offensive boards and finished the half on a 7-2 run to cut into LMU's lead, 37-33. Coming out of halftime, Cal Poly immediately pulled it to two, 41-39 but again it was the three, this one from Helmers, that gave LMU a five-point cushion. Meanwhile, Young, who had gone 1-for-5 in the first half, was heating up, scoring six straight points and yet another three from Helmers, her fourth of the game, put LMU ahead 53-43 with 13:46 left. The three-pointers kept falling for both sides as both teams matched each other long-ball for long-ball. Rachel Clancy hit two for Cal Poly but Helmers answered back with two of her own as the Lion lead hovered around seven. LMU tied the school record with its 12th long-ball of the game at 5:01 when Moore found Goss on the break and the junior dialed in from the wing to give LMU a 73-62 advantage. LMU led by 10 but left the door open for the Mustangs by committing fouls that sent Cal Poly to the line without the clock moving. Santiago sank four free throws, the final of which cut it to 78-70 with 1:31 left. Moore missed the front end of a one-and-one and fouled going after the rebound but Tamara Wells missed the front end for the Mustangs and Cal Poly was forced to foul the rest of the way. LMU knew who to get it to and Young, who leads the nation in free throws made per game, iced it with eight from the charity stripe in the final minute. The Lions return to Gersten Pavilion on Saturday to face UNLV in a Homecoming doubleheader. The women's game tips off at 2 p.m., with the men taking on Wyoming at 7 p.m. - GO LIONS - |
