Nov. 11, 2006
SAN DIEGO - Jessica Cheeks hit the game-winning basket with seven seconds remaining to lift Love and Basketball to a 61-59 victory over the San Diego State women's basketball team in an exhibition contest Saturday afternoon at Cox Arena. With the loss, the Aztecs split their pair of preseason games for the seventh time in the last eight seasons, after downing the Arizona Venom (100-57) on Tuesday.
SDSU got a game-high 23 points from junior forward Jennifer Layton (Sacramento, Calif.), who led the team in scoring for the second straight outing. Layton also tallied 12 rebounds and was one of two Aztecs to record double-doubles, joining freshman point guard Quenese Davis (Sacramento, Calif.), who had 11 points and 11 boards. Layton and senior forward Erin Jackson (Sparks, Nev.) each chipped in three steals, while junior forward Shanna Demus (Palmdale, Calif.) had five assists.
San Diego State owned a four-point advantage at 57-53 with just 2:08 remaining, but Davis was called for a foul and then a technical foul. Love & Basketball's Natalie Nakase made three of her four free throws to pull the visitor's back to within one at 57-56. After a turnover by both squads, the Aztecs made just two of their four free-throw attempts to push their advantage up to three points.
Cheeks equalized the game on a three-pointer with 50 seconds left and later rebounded the next SDSU field-goal attempt before calling a timeout with 27 remaining in the game. Cheeks came out of the break by coming off a screen and hitting the winner near the top of the key to claim the 61-59 victory.
Love and Basketball had three players in double-figures, including Nakase, who had 12 points, and Cheeks and Danielle Rainey, who scored 10 points apiece.
SDSU opens its 2006-07 regular season at home against Nevada this coming Tuesday at 7 p.m. The Aztecs then play host to UC Davis on Friday, before heading on the road across town to USD on Sunday.
All regular-season SDSU women's basketball contests will have live audio and video (home games only) on the internet free of charge via the school's official website, www.goaztecs.com.