Dec. 10, 2017
SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego State women's basketball team returned to the win column on Sunday after pulling away for a 92-68 victory over visiting Hope International at Steve Fisher Court.
With reigning Mountain West Player of the Week McKynzie Fort out resting an injury, freshman Te'a Adams picked up the scoring slack for the Aztecs (6-3), who had 10 players record at least one field goal on the afternoon.
Adams logged a career-best 20 points on 9-for-13 shooting to go along with game highs of eight rebounds and seven assists, while fellow classmate Najé Murray chipped in a personal-best 16 points of her own, highlighted by a 4-for-7 effort from beyond the three-point arc.
Senior Khalia Lark matched Murray with a 4-7 clip on triples as well, finishing with a season-high 14 points, while fellow classmates Geena Gomez and Cheyenne Greenhouse also notched double figures with 10 points apiece as the Scarlet and Black reached the 90-point barrier for the first time since scoring 90 in a wild home loss to San José State last February.
As a team, SDSU recorded its best field-goal percentage of the season thus far (.535) after connecting on 38 of 71 attempts from the floor, including a brisk 11-for-16 pace (.688) in the fourth quarter to put the game out of reach.
The two sides combined for 25 three-pointers on the day, including a 13-for-31 (.419) performance by the Aztecs, while the Royals (10-1) finished with a 12-for-32 clip (.375) from long range. The Scarlet and Black's 13 treys marked a season high and its most since drilling 14 in an 87-68 home victory over UNLV last January.
SDSU found itself trailing 11-10 following a pair of free throws by Chyann Pendergrass at the 3:49 mark of the first quarter before fashioning an 18-2 blitz over the next seven minutes to vault in front for good.
Adams scored five points during the run, while Greenhouse added four to put the host school up 28-13 with 7:15 remaining in the second period. HIU twice cut the deficit to single digits, including a 34-27 spread following a triple by Julia Pihl with 1:25 remaining in the quarter.
However, the Aztecs closed the half with a triple by Lark and consecutive layups by Adams, including one at the buzzer, to take a 41-27 lead into the locker room.
The Royals narrowed the gap to 49-41 after two foul shots by Emma Forel with 4:43 left in the third period, but could draw no closer. SDSU responded with a 17-8 run over the remainder of the quarter to seize the momentum. Adams and Gomez combined for 15 of those points during that stretch, as each player knocked down a triple.
With a 66-49 advantage firmly established at the outset of the fourth period, the Aztecs gave themselves some additional breathing room, increasing their lead to 25 points at 78-53 following a Greenhouse layup with 7:44 left in the game.
HIU had four players record double-digit scoring totals, including Pihl (15 pts.), who nailed five three-pointers, followed by Forel (13 pts.), Pendergrass (10 pts) and Nikki Andaya (10 pts.).
San Diego State wraps up its homestand on Thursday, Dec. 14, when it tangles with Santa Clara, starting at 6:30 p.m. PT.