Dec. 19, 2015
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State's McKynzie Fort (Fontana, Calif.) scored a game-high 22 points on Saturday to lead the Aztec women's basketball team to a 54-43 victory over Cal State Fullerton in a non-conference clash at Steve Fisher Court at Viejas Arena. The sophomore guard tied her career-best with 10 field goals and came up with three steals to help SDSU raise its record to 4-6 on the season and send the Titans (2-10) to their 10th loss in a row.
The Aztec defense enjoyed a spectacular day, limiting the Titans to an opponent season-low field-goal percentage, as the visitors connected on just 17 of 59 attempts (28.8 percent) from the floor, including a 6-for-30 clip (20.0 percent) from three-point territory. SDSU didn't fare much better overall, sinking 22 of 62 shots from the field (35.5 percent), including a 2-for-15 effort (13.3 percent) from beyond the arc.
However, the Aztecs forced 21 turnovers while committing a season-low nine miscues of their own. Despite a 45-36 rebounding deficiency, SDSU also outscored CSUF 32-22 in the paint and maintained a sizable 15-2 spread on fast-break points to help key its win.
For the first time this year, the Aztecs led wire-to-wire, building a pair of 13-point cushions in the second quarter, including a 29-16 advantage on a jumper by senior Ahjalee Harvey (Mountain View, Calif.) with 3:40 remaining before intermission. The Titans responded with a Samantha Logan three-pointer and a basket by Dhanyel Johnson to cut the deficit to single digits before Fort nailed a jumper with just over a minute left in the period to give the contest its 31-21 score at halftime.
SDSU held CSUF in check throughout the third quarter, fashioning a 45-34 lead on another basket by Fort with 10 seconds elapsed in the fourth period. The Titans threatened to make a game of it at this juncture, reeling off nine straight points, capped a Dani Craig three-pointer, to narrow the gap to 45-43 with 4:43 remaining in the contest. However, the Aztecs kept the visitors off the scoreboard for the rest of the afternoon, as CSUF missed six field goals down the stretch and committed four turnovers. Meanwhile, Fort fittingly notched six of the game's final nine points to account for the margin of victory.
In addition to Fort's performance, SDSU received seven points from sophomore Geena Gomez (Huntington Beach, Calif.) during a crucial 9-2 Aztec run in the second quarter, while Harvey and fellow classmate Deidra Smith (Aurora, Colo.) grabbed six rebounds apiece.
On the other hand, the Titans were led by Michelle Berry's nine points and a career-best 16 rebounds, including 12 on the defensive glass, while Craig finished with eight points in the loss.
SDSU wraps up its homestand on Monday, Dec. 21, when it plays host to San Diego Christian, beginning at 6:30 p.m. PT.