-

Saturday, November 13, 2010

#13 UAA ropes 'Lopes at Disney

ANAHEIM, Calif. (Nov. 13) – Alysa Horn and Kaylie Robison both posted double-doubles and Nikki Aden scored 12 points Saturday to lift the 13th-ranked Alaska Anchorage women’s basketball team to a 63-55 victory over Grand Canyon at Disney’s Div. II Tip-Off Classic at the Anaheim Convention Center.

The Seawolves (2-0) got a team-high 14 points and 11 rebounds from Horn as the redshirt sophomore from Kodiak recorded career-highs in both categories.

The Antelopes (1-1) were led by a game-high 19 points from guard Samantha Murphy, but the reigning Pacific West Conference Player of the Year was limited to just four points in the second half.

UAA knocked off its second conference preseason favorite within 24 hours after dropping California Collegiate Athletic Association power UC San Diego, 74-62, in last night’s late game.

Robison, a 6-0 junior transfer from College of Eastern Utah, played a big role again, posting 11 points and 11 rebounds for her second double-double of the tournament. The Sandy, Utah, native made all four of her shots from the field and all three of her free throws.

After starting the game with a 6-0 spurt, the Seawolves fell victim to a big Antelopes run and trailed 20-12 with nine minutes on the first-half clock. But Murphy picked up her second foul at that point and UAA took advantage of her presence on the bench, making an 11-0 run to regain the lead.

Tied at 31-31, point guard Kaitlin McBride (8 points, 3-6 FG, 2-2 FT) drove the length of the court and hit a short jumper to give UAA a 33-31 lead at halftime.

UAA’s defense was at its best early in the second half, holding the Phoenix, Ariz., squad without a field goal for nearly eight minutes, however the Seawolves could not stretch their lead to more than six points. GCU sliced its deficit to just 42-40 on a jumper by freshman Maylinn Smith with nine minutes left before Horn quickly answered with a jump shot of her own.

The Seawolf lead would grow to 56-47 when Robison converted a layup off a nice post feed from Hanna Johansson (7 points, 8 rebounds) at the 3:38 mark. The ‘Lopes sliced it to 59-55 and with a chance to cut it further, but Smith’s three-point try hit iron with 38 seconds left and UAA’s Sasha King grabbed the rebound.

Aden and Johansson would seal the victory with four consecutive free throws, giving the Seawolves their second NCAA Div. II West Region victory of the year.

Aden shot 4-of-10 from the field and 3-of-3 from the free-throw line, while King finished with six points and a pair of assists.

Horn was the hero of the day, shooting 5-of-10 overall and 3-of-5 from long range. After playing a minor reserve role last season, the 6-foot forward has emerged as a quality starter in her third season with the program, adding a pair of assists on Saturday as well.

UAA finishes its trip to Anaheim on Sunday when it faces Texas Woman’s University at 3 p.m. AST.

No comments:

Post a Comment