Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
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Bulldog's Comeback Bid Falls Short Against SMU, 68-59
1/6/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Jan. 6, 2005
FRESNO, Calif.- Fresno State nearly erased a 16-point second-half deficit before coming up short in a 68-59 loss to SMU on Thursday night at the Save Mart Center in front of a crowd of 3,778.SMU (12-1, 3-0 WAC) and Fresno State (10-2, 2-1 WAC) both placed three players in double figures, with Janielle Dodds pacing the Mustangs with a game-high 22 points. The Bulldogs were led by Amy Parrish's 15 points, while Mirenda Swearengin tallied 11 and Aritta Lane 10.
The Bulldogs, who entered the game riding a four-game winning streak, closed to within 59-55 at the 2:51 mark of the second half after the Mustangs had stretched their lead to 57-41 six minutes earlier. However, SMU ended the game on a 9-2 run to secure the win.
The teams shot 37-percent overall but two categories stood out in SMU's favor. The Mustangs held a 43-38 edge on the boards and committed only 11 turnovers compared to the Bulldog's mark of 19.
Fresno State scored the first eight points of the game (their largest lead of the contest) and remained in control until SMU's Shonte Roberts knocked down a mid-range jumper to knot the game at 22-22 with 6:58 on the clock.
SMU took the lead for the first time at 26-25 and received seven points from Dodds over the final 6:06 of the first half to take a 33-32 halftime lead.
Fresno State scored the first bucket of the second half before SMU charged back. After Tierre Wilson's basket tied the game at 39-39, the Bulldogs went into an offensive drought that spanned the next five minutes. An 11-0 run by SMU put the Mustangs up 50-39 before Swearengin's jumper snapped the scoreless streak.
Trailing 57-41, Fresno State began to chip away at the lead and a 14-2 scoring run that ended with two free throws from Swearengin cut the SMU advantage to 59-55 with 2:51 remaining.
However, a put-back from Parrish accounted for Fresno State's only scoring thereafter and SMU put the finishing touches on a 68-59 win.
Fresno State looks to rebound from tonight's loss when it hosts three-time defending champion Louisiana Tech on Saturday, Jan. 8 at 2 p.m.
