Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Santa Clara
Women's Basketball Takes Down Santa Clara, 62-55
12/4/2002 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 4, 2002
SANTA CLARA, Calif.- After a cold-shooting first half performance, Fresno State shot 55-percent in the second half and rallied for a 62-55 victory over Santa Clara at the Leavey Center on Wednesday night. The Bulldogs (3-2) have now won three straight, their longest winning streak since the start of last year's campaign when they won their first three games.
Fresno State outscored Santa Clara 44-32 in the second half and received a game-high 20 points from Lindsay Logan (Sandy, Utah), who also became Fresno State's all-time leader in three-point field goals when she hit a triple with two minutes remaining in the contest. Sophomore Aritta Lana (Aiea, Hawaii) added 16 points and eight rebounds, while senior Omelogo Udeze (Los Angeles, Calif.) pulled down a season-best 11 boards.
The Bulldogs, who won just two road games in 2001-02, snapped Santa Clara's 12-game home winning streak at the Leavey Center and avenged last year's 75-65 loss to the Broncos in Fresno.
"This was just a great win for us to get on the road," said Fresno State head coach Stacy Johnson-Klein. "It's good to be 3-2 at this point with some confidence heading into our toughest road game so far at Utah on Saturday. I was not pleased with our effort in the first half but we were able to pick it up and really challenge their defense in the second. You can see that these girls are really beginning to buy into our system and are playing with pride and confidence."
Both teams came out with cold-shooting first halves, with Santa Clara claiming a 23-18 lead at intermission. The Bulldogs shot just 30-percent (7-23) from the field, while the Broncos checked in at 34-percent (9-26)- including 2-10 from three-point territory. The schools combined for 25 turnovers in the first period of play, which also featured 18 total fouls.
After Fresno State began the first half by making two of the game's first three baskets, Santa Clara responded by hitting three straight shots for an 11-4 lead. Lane knocked down two free throws to snap a six-minute scoring drought and cut the Bronco lead to two at 11-9, but the host school responded with yet another scoring run. Logan's lay-up then brought the Bulldogs to within one with just under two minutes remaining before Santa Clara hit a jumper to close out the half with a 23-18 advantage.
Fresno State went on a 12-8 run to open the second half, only to fall behind 33-30 following a basket by Santa Clara's Quinn Thomas. The Bulldogs would continue to chip away and found themselves leading for the first time since the 16th minute mark in the first quarter when senior Laura Garcia (Fresno, Calif.) nailed a three-pointer from the top of the key to make it 39-38.
With the Bulldogs leading 44-43, Santa Clara's Kim Butler gave the Broncos a brief one-point lead with a jumper on the ensuing trip down the floor. However, the 'Dogs answered with a 6-0 run of their own to take a 50-45 lead with five minutes left in the contest. After Santa Clara's Thomas poured in back-to-back three-pointers to inch the Broncos closer at 53-51, Logan responded with a triple of her own from the top of the key to make give Fresno State a 56-51 cushion. Not only did that triple ice the game for the 'Dogs, but it made Logan the all-time Fresno State leader in three-point field goals.
A jumper by senior Omelogo Udeze (Los Angeles, Calif.) and three free-throws from senior Channan High (New Carrollton, Md.) closed out the victory for Fresno State. Garcia turned in an impressive outing for the 'Dogs as well, chipping in with nine points (all on three-pointers) and four rebounds.
Santa Clara's Quinn Thomas led the Broncos with 14 points, while teammate Tammy Annas posted a double-double with 11 points and 11 boards.
Fresno State battles Utah on Saturday afternoon in Salt Lake City, with tip-off slated for 2 p.m. PST.
