Jan. 4, 2000
SAN DIEGO - Senior Mary Apiafi posted her sixth double-double with 21 points and 14 rebounds and three other Aztecs scored in double figures as the San Diego State women?s basketball team shocked Texas Christian, 63-51, at Cox Arena Tuesday night.
The victory was the second in a row and third in the last four games for SDSU, which improved to 4-8 on the year. The back-to-back victories marks the first time the Aztecs have won consecutive games since knocking off San Jose State and Fresno State on Jan. 28 and 30 last season.
The Horned Frogs, who had won four of their last five, fell to 9-6 and were limited to their lowest scoring output of the season.
?This was a big win for us over a quality opponent and a great way to head into conference play,? said SDSU head coach Barb Smith, whose Aztecs open their Mountain West Conference season on Thursday, Jan 13 at home against Utah. ?We struggled at times tonight, but the key was our perseverance. We played great defense and our kids never gave up, which is becoming our trademark.?
And the Aztecs could have easily thrown in the towel after a first half that saw SDSU commit 19 turnovers and trail by seven at intermission.
That deficit swelled to as many as 12 points with 11:08 to play before San Diego State went on a 17-3 run over the next six minutes to take their first lead since the 15:49 mark of the first half at 48-46. Freshman Jamey Cox, who finished with 10 points, scored eight during the spurt, including a pair of three pointers to put the Aztecs back on top.
TCU, however, regained the lead and held a 51-50 advantage with 3:17 to go. But the Horned Frogs, who shot a just .364 from the field and tied a season-high with 25 turnovers, never scored again as the Aztecs reeled of 13 unanswered points, including seven of eight free throws in the final two minutes, to seal the victory.
Junior Anita Bundage finished with 13 points and seven rebounds and classmate Shannon Lee added 10 points and dished out a career-high 10 assists for the Aztecs, who now have 10 days to prepare for the start of conference play.
San Diego State 63, TCU 51
San Diego State (4-8)
Bundage 3-9 6-8 13, Otii 3-9 0-0 6, Apiafi 8-16 5-6 21, Lee 2-4 6-8 10, Cox 3-7 2-2 10, Wheeler 1-4 0-0 3, Kiesling 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-49 19-24 37.
TCU (9-6)
Jackson 4-16 0-0 9, Payne 7-15 1-2 17, Clayton 2-4 0-0 4, A. Sutton 1-4 0-0 3, J. Sutton 4-8 1-1 12, Thomas 1-3 0-0 2, Spencer 0-3 0-0 0, Walter 1-2 2-2 4. Totals 20-55 4-5 51.
Halftime?TCU 28, SDSU 21. 3-Point Goals?SDSU 4-8 (Bundage 1-3, Cox 2-4, Wheeler 1-1), TCU 7-18 (Jackson 1-7, Payne 2-2, A. Sutton 1-4, J. Sutton 3-4, Thomas 0-1). Fouled out?SDSU None, TCU Jackson, Walter. Rebounds?SDSU 37 (Apiafi 14), TCU 31 (Jackson, Payne 5). Assists?SDSU 13 (Lee 10), TCU 10 (Jackson, Clayton, A. Sutton, J. Sutton 2). Fouls?SDSU 9, TCU 25. Attendance?517.