Nov. 11, 2007
RENO, Nev. - In a game featuring two schools with high pressure defenses, the San Diego State women's basketball team survived a stern test in its 2007-08 season-opener, defeating host Nevada, 67-61, Sunday afternoon at the Lawlor Events Center. The Aztecs claimed their first game of a campaign for the first time since 2002, to improve to 1-0, while the Wolf Pack dropped to 1-1 overall.
"I have great respect for Nevada," SDSU head coach Beth Burns said. "I knew that in the end, the toughest team was going to win."
San Diego State got a huge game from a pair of players making their collegiate debuts. Freshman center Paris Johnson (San Diego, Calif.) had 16 points, nine rebounds and five blocks in 38 minutes. Redshirt frosh Allison Duffy (Lakeside, Calif.) scored 10 of her 14 points in the second half, while sophomore Quenese Davis (Sacramento, Calif.) was the third Aztec in double-figures with a team-best 17 points.
Sophomore Jené Morris (San Francisco, Calif.), who played her first game in an Aztec uniform, notched a game-high seven steals. Junior guard Tamika Lipford (Oceanside, Calif.) provided a solid performance off the bench, recording six points, two steals and two rebounds, one of which came on a critical play with 12 seconds left in the game.
SDSU started off the year by scoring the first basket on a jumper by Morris. Nevada countered with a pair of free throws, but the Aztecs answered again in a back-and-forth first half.
The visitors led by as many as five points at the 7:53 mark at 26-21, but the host went into the locker room on a 15-8 run to end the half with a two-point 36-34 advantage.
The Aztecs struggled to find their offensive rhythm coming out of the break, taking five and a half minutes to hit their first field goal. SDSU used that bucket to start a 9-0 run to knot the game at 43-43 and take a two-point lead at 45-43 with 11:32 remaining.
The two sides were tied again at 45 points, but the Aztecs maintained an advantage the rest of the way. SDSU was up by five points on four occasions, including as late as 59-54, but Nevada came to within a pair with 2:39 left and again with 45 seconds remaining. The Aztecs made six of their final eight free-throw attempts to preserve the 67-61 victory.
Nevada was led by Cherlanda Franklin's 12 points and seven rebounds. The Aztecs avenged a loss to the Wolf Pack in last year's season-opener in San Diego.
San Diego State continues its season-opening two-game road trip when the team travels to Saint Mary's for a 2 p.m. game next Saturday in Moraga, Calif.