Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Cal State Fullerton
Women's Basketball Routs Cal State Fullerton, 71-53
12/19/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Dec. 19, 2003
FULLERTON, Calif.- Junior Veronica Mack (Phoenix, Ariz.) poured in a career-high 19 points to lead Fresno State past Cal State Fullerton in a 71-53 non-conference victory on Friday night.
The Bulldogs (5-3) shot 55.1-percent overall in the contest compared to Cal State Fullerton's 35.1-perecent. Senior Mindy Clark (La Habra, Calif.) registered a double-double, pulling down a career-high 11 rebounds with 10 points.
Fresno State held a 40-30 rebounding edge and shot 61.5-percent in the second half, a 16-26 clip. Cal State Fullerton falls to 0-8 with the loss.
"I thought we responded well in the second half after a sluggish first 20 minutes," said head coach Stacy Johnson-Klein. "Veronica really stepped up in the second half and helped give us a cushion. Once again, I thought we dominated the boards and that helped us do some different things offensively in the second half."
In a first half that featured four ties and three lead changes, Fresno State used a late 14-2 scoring run to take a 32-26 lead into halftime.
Cal State Fullerton's Charlee Underwood canned a three-pointer to give the Titans their largest lead at 14-11 with 12:15 remaining, but Fresno State went back in front two possessions later on a triple by senior Chanie Sutherland (Odessa, Texas).
Sutherland's three-pointer gave the 'Dogs a brief cushion until the Titans converted on three of their next four possessions to hold a brief 19-18 lead with 8:01 on the clock.
Fresno State responded with its biggest scoring run of the first half, a 14-2 segment that featured seven points from junior Chantea Fleming (Chino Hills, Calif.). Two free throws from sophomore Lauren Selmon (Norman, Okla.) put Fresno State in front at 20-19 and a putback by freshman Brittani Green (Dallas, Texas) capped the run and gave Fresno State a 32-21 edge.
Cal State Fullerton countered by scoring five consecutive points before intermission.
The Titans cut the Bulldog's lead to four on two different occasions to begin the second half. Fresno State then began to pull away, extending its lead to 49-35 after three consecutive three-pointers from Mack.
Cal State Fullerton got back to within 15 points after a trey from Tamara Quinn made it 57-42.
However, Fresno State had just too much firepower and closed out the contest by scoring 14 of the game's final 25 points.
The Bulldogs conclude their road trip on Sunday, Dec. 21 against UCLA. Tip-off at Pauley Pavilion is slated for 2 p.m.
