Long Beach State University
Pacific
49ers Take Down Tigers 69-57
3/6/2008 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
March 6, 2008
Long Beach, Calif. - Solid defense and a season-best 22 points from Karina Figueroa helped Long Beach State earn their third conference win 69-57 over Pacific. The 49ers held the Tigers to just 19-66 shooting, a 28.8% rate and the lowest since February of last season.
The 49ers benefited especially from being able to contain Janae Young. The Tigers leading scorer, Young finished with seven points, but fired up 17 shots, hitting only three on the night. While the 49ers matched the Pacific woes from the field in the first half, the Beach took higher percentage shots in the second half and hit 56% of them in the second frame. That charge was led in part by Figueroa, who was a perfect 4-4 from three in the second half and 6-7 overall.
Figueroa in all had a huge night, not only leading the team in scoring but also in rebounds and assists with six of each. The 49ers also got a lot of bench help, primarily in the form of Valeriya Musina. The junior was a perfect 6-6 from the line and ended with 13 points.
Long Beach State picked up an early lead after giving up a few early baskets. Stepping up their defensive pressure, the 49ers made stops and after a Lauren Sims three took an 11-5 lead. With that advantage, the 49ers continued to hit from outside, taking a 20-10 lead after a second Sims three.
Pacific began to pull back into the game, gaining the momentum briefly before a big trip down. With the score 22-15, a hard foul underneath prompted a technical foul on Pacific's Karen Dawkins, leading to two Figueroa free throws and the absence of Dawkins for the rest of the half with three fouls. However, the 49ers went cold at that point, and the Tigers began an 8-2 run to help close the lead to five at the half 28-23.
In the second half, the 49ers again took the momentum and built a 10-point lead at 39-29 with sixteen minutes to play. Over the next four minutes, the Tigers put together a small run, but a Timmons basket helped the 49ers slow the run, and a Figueroa three at 10:07 put the 49ers ahead by 14. Pacific came back with two straight threes however, and after a Long Beach State turnover Pacific was able to cut the lead to six with two Jasmine Dana free throws. That was the closest that the Tigers would get, however, as the 49ers found Figueroa for another three from the wing, and on the next trip down got an easy layup from O'Brien on the post.
Late chances for Pacific were hampered by missed front ends of two 1-and-1 free throw attempts, and a good defensive stand under the 4:00 minute mark for the Tigers still went in the 49ers favor thanks to Figueroa, who hit a 20-footer with one second on the shot clock to put the lead up to 15 points.
One final opportunity for the Tigers came as Long Beach State returned the favor on the free throw line, missing the first of two bonus free throws in the closing minutes. Pacific managed to cut the lead down to eight, but a home run pass over the top of a full court press to Figueroa for an easy layup sealed the win for the Beach.
Long Beach State heads on the road for their first game next week to play at UC Riverside on Wednesday before returning to Long Beach for their next-to-last home game against Cal State Bakersfield. The last non-conference opponent for Long Beach State, tipoff for that game is scheduled for 5 p.m. in the Walter Pyramid.
