No. 15 'Lopes Lose Close Contest to No. 20 Western Washington

Wednesday, December 19

Las Vegas, NV

4:00 PM

Grand Canyon

10-3

#20 Western Washington

8-2

OT 1

Grand Canyon

Western Washington

Judy Jones

Photo by: Theon Carrier

No. 15 'Lopes Lose Close Contest to No. 20 Western Washington

12/19/2012 6:12:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

Drop 72-68 in overtime at South Point Holiday Hoops Classic

The 15^th-ranked Grand Canyon University women’s basketball team fell to No. 20 Western Washington, 72-68, today in overtime in their final game as part of the South Point Holiday Hoops Classic in Las Vegas, Nev. The loss snapped a season-long nine-game win streak for the Antelopes, who are now 10-3 overall. The Vikings are now 8-2 overall.

The game saw 10 tied scores and 13 lead changes throughout, most of which came in the second half.

GCU shot 37.7 percent from the field (26-for-69) and were hampered by a 17.6 percentage (3-for-17) from behind the arc. The Vikings grabbed 57 rebounds compared to 42 for the ‘Lopes, but GCU dominated in the paint with 36 points compared to 22 for Western Washington.

“Our team showed a lot of fight,” said head coach Trent May. “As a coaching staff, that is what we like to see. We did a good job battling in that second half and have proven that we can shut down a lot of teams in that time. But it makes things much easier if we can take care of the first half as well. The first 20 minutes we have to come out and be ready and have that initial focus and fight.”

Judy Jones posted another double-double, her eighth straight, with 24 points and 15 rebounds. Her point total also marked the ninth straight game she has scored in double digits. Maylinn Smith added 13 points for the ‘Lopes.

GCU shot just 24.2 percent from the field (8-for-33) in the first, led by Jones with seven points. The Vikings held the advantage in rebounds, 29-21, and points in the paint, 14-12, while both squads committed nine turnovers.

“We knew we had to rebound, but tonight we were at the opposite end of what we have done all season,” added May. “We got hammered on the boards. We knew we needed to do that to win and it is amazing we still had a chance in the game even though we were outrebounded.”

The two teams traded baskets to open the contest, with neither leading by more than three points in the first six minutes, during which there were two tied scores and two lead changes. GCU used a 7-0 run spanning four minutes to turn a 7-4 deficit into an 11-7 lead with just under 14 minutes to play.

The Vikings knotted the score at 11 and reclaimed the lead at 18-11 with 9:29 to play via an 11-0 run spanning over five minutes. Overall, since tying the score with 12:41 remaining in the first, Western Washington outscored GCU 11-4 over the next seven minutes to build a 22-15 advantage. The Vikings took their largest lead of the half at nine points, 26-17, with 2:09 to play.

Jenna Pearson drained a three-pointer to make it a six-point contest with under one minute, but a Vikings shot at the buzzer gave Western Washington an eight-point advantage, 28-20, at the half.

As they did to begin the first 20 minutes, the two teams went basket for basket until the ‘Lopes were able to pull within one point, 32-31, following a Jones three-point play with 16:16 on the clock. GCU used a 13-4 run over the first four and a half minutes of the second to reclaim the lead at 33-32.

GCU came out shooting much better in the second, posting a 57.7 field goal percentage (15-for-26).

The lead would go back and forth for the next few possessions with neither team holding more than a one point advantage for nearly four minutes until the Vikings went up 41-39 with just under 12 minutes to play. From the 15:59 mark until 10 minutes on the clock, the game saw eight lead changes and two tied scores.

Western Washington built a five-point lead, 48-43, with 9:22 remaining before a Smith three-pointer and two Jones free-throws tied the score at 48 at the 8:12 mark. The game was tied three more times before the ‘Lopes went up three, 58-55, with under two minutes to play. The Vikings tied the score via a three-pointer with 30 seconds on the clock to force overtime.

Western Washington scored first in the overtime period and used a 4-0 run to build a 62-48 lead with three and a half minutes to play. The Vikings went up by six, 66-60, after outscoring GCU 8-2 over the first three minutes of the extra period.

Jones converted a three-point play to cut the Vikings’ lead in half with 1:29 on the clock, but Western Washington outscored the ‘Lopes 6-5 in the final minute to hold on for the close victory.

“We did a good job of getting the ball inside, but we were hoping to get more of those shots to fall,” May said.

GCU will now be off until hosting Northern New Mexico at 2 p.m. on Dec. 30 at GCU Arena. Fans can follow the action via live video by visiting www.gculopes.com.

WWU 72, GCU 68 OT