Box Score
LOS ANGELES, Calif. --- The Loyola Marymount Lions were able to overcome an early first-half deficit to defeat the Portland Pilots 78-70 in a West Coast Conference women’s basketball game played on Thursday night at Gersten Pavilion. Tara Cronin had 16 points to lead Portland, while Lauren Angel added 13.
The Pilots, who drop their fifth straight game, actually had more field goals and one more three-pointer than LMU, but the Lions were able to convert 19 of 28 free throws en route to the win. The Pilots were just 4-for-6 from the foul line.
Portland is now 9-8 on the year and 0-2 in the WCC. LMU improves to a perfect 3-0 in conference and to 9-8 overall.
Trailing by six at the half, the Pilots were forced to play catch-up the entire second half. The Pilots got close a couple of times, including 41-39 after a pair of free throws from ReZina TecleMariam about two minutes into the second half. LMU, as they would the rest of the way, responded to push the lead back up to eight.
Later trailing by nine, the Pilots were once again able to climb their way back into the game. And after freshman Alexis Byrd drilled a three-pointer, the LMU lead was only 59-56 with 9:40 to play. The deficit was still only three moments later after a Cronin three-pointer, but that’s when LMU would embark on a run to eventually claim a 14-point lead and put the game out of reach.
UP was 28-for-60 (46.7 percent) from the field and hit 10 three’s. LMU shot 43.9 percent (25-for-57) and connected on nine three-pointers.
Cronin was 6-for-12 and hit three three-pointers. Angel was an efficient 6-for-10.
LMU’s Renahy Young scored 22 points to lead all scorers, while her teammate Candice Nichols scored 21. Camille Buckley had 10 points and 18 boards for the double-double.
UP still outrebounded LMU 37-35 and was led by eight boards from Jessica Clemens.
The Pilots were in control much of the first half, maintaining a lead for much of the way. Portland’s biggest lead came when TecleMariam found Nakeisha Brown on a fast break for a wide open three-pointer. Brown buried it to make it 12-5 nearly seven minutes in.
Portland still led 32-28 moments later when Young hit back-to-back three-pointers to give LMU the slim 33-32 advantage. The Lions then converted on a handful of lay-ups during a 13-0 run to give LMU a nine-point lead with less than a minute remaining in the half. Cronin then hit a much-needed deep three to beat the shot clock and end the run.
LMU would take a 41-35 lead into the locker room.
The Pilots next make the short trek up to Malibu for a WCC game against Pepperdine on Saturday. Tip-off between the Pilots and Waves is set for 2:00 p.m.
