Nov. 16, 2001
SAN DIEGO - Sometimes the best offense is a good defense.
San Diego State struggled to get things going in the first half offensively, but ratcheted up its defensive effort after the break to fuel a 63-54 come-from-behind victory over Cal Poly in the season opener for both teams Friday night at Cox Arena.
Senior Atim Otii recorded her third career double-double with 16 points and a game-high 10 rebounds, and junior Ashonda Williams added 16 points in her Division I debut as the Aztecs came away victorious in a season opener for the first time in four years.
"I was happy with the effort we gave on defense," said SDSU head coach Barb Smith as the Aztecs held Cal Poly to just 34 percent shooting for the game and 30 percent in the second half. "We've been talking a lot about playing with fire and an enthusiasm to win and unleashing it and we did that tonight, particularly on defense."
San Diego State played solid on the defensive end in the first half but trailed 26-22 at intermission and by six points just over five minutes into the second stanza before Otii caught fire, scoring nine of her 14 second-half points during a 20-5 Aztec run that forged a 51-42 SDSU lead with 8:05 to play.
Just over two minutes later junior Jamey Cox, who finished with 11 points three assists, scored on back-to-back lay-ups to give the Aztecs their first double-digit lead of the game. They would never trail again.
"This team has the potential to put a lot of points on the board we just have to play smart," said Smith, whose Aztecs exploded for 41 points after halftime. "We are powerful and explosive at times, but we've got to be able to sustain it for a 40-minute effort."
Junior Valencia Howard, who was also making her major-college debut, also gathered 10 rebounds and senior Morgan Vargas added six boards and six points as San Diego State ended the game with a 45-33 edge on the glass, including a 28-12 advantage in the second half.
"At the half we really felt we needed to crash the offensive boards," said Smith. "We knew the scoring would come if we could get to the offensive glass and it did in the second half."
Senior Tanisha Knight led the Aztec reserves with eight points off the bench. Sophomore Nicolette McCartny (ankle) and freshman Maggie Sauls (knee) and Heather Wolf (ankle) did not dress due to injury.
The San Diego State women's basketball team returns to action on Sunday, Nov. 18, when the Aztecs travel north to the Bay Area to face California at 2 p.m. The Aztecs defeated the Golden Bears, 63-49, last season in Cox Arena