Nov. 19, 2011
The San Diego State women's basketball team stayed perfect on the season with a dominating 71-44 victory Saturday afternoon over Hawai'i at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu. The Aztecs moved to 3-0 on the year and 2-0 at the three-day, four-team tournament, while UH dropped to 1-2 and 0-2 this weekend.
All 13 players on SDSU's active roster saw action against the Wahine with all but one getting on the scoreboard. Junior guard Courtney Clements (Long Beach, Calif.) led the way for the third game in a row with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting in only 23 minutes of action. Freshman guard Ahjalee Harvey (Mountain View, Calif.) was the only other Aztec in double-figures, notching a career-high 12 points, including two of the team's five 3-pointers. Junior Chelsea Hopkins (Las Vegas, Nev.) tallied four steals and three assists, while sophomore Melissa Sweat (Bakersfield, Calif.) contributed six rebounds.
The Aztecs never trailed in the game as Hawai'i missed its first 12 field-goal attempts before hitting its first at the 9:47 mark. By that time the visitors had already built a 21-9 margin and that lead would grow to as many as 21 before settling at 18 points heading into the locker room at 36-18.
San Diego State came out of the break on a 9-0 run with a triple and two free throws by Clements, a jumper by Sweat and a steal that led to a lay-up from Hopkins. The Wahine would go on a slight run to get to within as few as 21 points on two occasions with the final one being with the score at 61-40.
Over the final 2:49, the Aztecs ended the game on a 10-4 run to secure its third victory in as many tries this season at 71-44.
SDSU dominated the boards with a plus-20 advantage and shot 47.8 percent from the field, including over 50 percent in the opening 15 minutes. Hawai'i, meanwhile, only made 10 field goals over the entire game and scored 23 of its 44 points at the charity stripe, while make only one 3-pointer.
The Rainbow Wahine were led by Kamillah Jackson's 14 points and five rebounds, while Kanisha Bello added 10.
San Diego State will conclude the Jack In the Box Rainbow Wahine Classic on Sunday with a 3 p.m. HT/5 p.m. PT tip vs. Portland (2-2). The Aztecs are looking to win their first non-conference regular season tournament since claiming the 2009 San Diego Surf `N Slam at Viejas Arena.