Long Beach State University Athletics
Long Beach State University
10-3
Denver
2-11
Jody Wynn Reaches Milestone as LBSU Tops Denver, 48-41
12/28/2015 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
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DENVER, Colo. - The Long Beach State women's basketball team held Denver to two field goals over the final 16 minutes to emerge with a hard-fought 48-41 victory Monday evening at Magness Arena.
It was a milestone for seventh-year head coach Jody Wynn as it marked her 100th career win at the Beach.
"The only thing it means is that I've been surrounded by pretty good players," Wynn said. "I've been blessed to have an amazing group the past seven years. They are great kids who listen, play together and want to get better every day. It's just been a joy to be part of the journey."
The 49ers (10-3) struggled offensively, but picked up their defensive intensity in the second half where they held the Pioneers to just 15 points, including only four in the fourth quarter. DU committed 14 turnovers and shot 23.8 percent over the final 20 minutes.
Long Beach State finished the game shooting 27.6 percent from the field, but outrebounded Denver, 40-38, and held a 15-to-6 advantage on the offensive boards. The Beach also forced the Pioneers into 23 turnovers.
Junior Raven Benton led LBSU with a game-high tying nine points. Junior Jewelyn Sawyer also had eight points and 10 rebounds, while classmate Anna Kim added eight points and four steals. Junior Madison Montgomery and sophomore Gigi Hascheff contributed seven points each.
It started out as a back-and-forth affair with four ties over the opening 10 minutes. Long Beach State took its first lead of the night at 4-2 following a Chanterria Jackson jumper at the 7:40 mark. Denver then pulled ahead 7-4 before a 3-pointer from sophomore Jessica Gertz knotted it up at 7-7. The two teams eventually ended the first quarter locked in a 9-9 tie.
Freshman Katie Webster made 1-of-2 free throws to start the second period, giving the Beach a 10-9 edge, but the Pioneers answered with an 11-1 run to go on top, 20-11, with 5:58 to go. The 49ers chipped away and after five-straight points from Kim, they cut the deficit to three (24-21) at the 2:08 mark. DU would get the final bucket of the half, however, as it held a 26-21 edge at intermission.
Denver (2-11) went up by nine early in the third frame before LBSU came storming back with a 10-0 run, capped by a 3-pointer from Montgomery, to take a 35-34 lead at the 2:02 mark. Long Beach State kept the advantage at the end of the period at 39-37. The 49ers held DU without a field goal over the final 6:30.
The Beach never trailed in the fourth quarter as Hascheff scored the first points at the 6:29 mark to put the visitors up, 41-37. The Pioneers came back to tie it up at 41-41, after their only points of the period. Long Beach State then closed out the game on a 7-0 run for the 48-41 victory.
Maya Rodgers and Jacqlyn Poss paced Denver with nine points each, while Jordyn Alt finished with eight points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
LBSU will stay on the road this week as it heads to Seattle for a 2 p.m. showdown on Thursday, Dec. 31.
NOTES: Jody Wynn is the fourth head coach in program history to reach the 100-win mark ... Long Beach State has held 12 opponents to 60 points or fewer and five to under 50 ... LBSU also forced more than 20 turnovers for the eighth time in 13 games ... Jewelyn Sawyer had her third double-figure rebounding game ... The Beach won the battle on the boards for the second time this season ... The 49ers shot a season-low 27.6 percent from the field and had no players reach double figures in scoring for the first time since Feb. 25, 2012. ... Long Beach State is the first Big West team to reach 10 wins for the second year in a row ... Denver had only seven active players with five seeing more than 35 minutes of action ... The Beach was without its lone senior Chantel Dooley who is out with a knee injury.
