Women's Basketball Release
1/13 - GEORGE FOX 63, LEWIS & CLARK 46: Bruins Overcome Sluggish Shooting Start to Overpower Pios
PORTLAND, Ore. - A 14-0 run over the last seven minutes of the first half enabled the George Fox University Bruins to break a 14-all tie, and the Bruins rolled through the second half for a 63-46 victory over the Lewis & Clark College Pioneers in a Northwest Conference women's basketball game Friday night here at the Pamplin Sports Center.
Both teams struggled to put the ball in the hole in the first half, the Pios hitting 22.7% (5-22) and the Bruins not much better at 26.5% (9-34), a factor that kept the game close in the early stages. There were five ties in the first 13 minutes, the last at 14-14 when the Pios' Sarah Moon hit a pair of free throws with 7:01 to play. Erin Powers, who led all scorers in the half with 9 points, broke the tie for the Bruins with a pair of charity tosses at 6:09, and the Bruins added three more baskets and six free throws to take a 28-14 halftime lead.
Katy Campbell hit a pair of free throws to start the second half for the Bruins, giving them 16 unanswered points, before Crystal Castle snapped the string with a short jumper, the Pios' first points in over eight minutes. The Bruins maintained a double-digit lead throughout the remainder of the game, however, taking its largest lead of 19 points at 43-24 on a Kim Leith three-pointer with 10:31 to play. The Bruins also hit the 19-point margin twice in the final two minutes. The shooting percentages for both teams improved dramatically in the second half, the Bruins to 48.0% (12-25) and the Pios to 52.0% (13-25).
Campbell led the Bruins by posting her first career double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds, and also passed out 5 assists. Powers added 13 points and Leith 10. The Bruin defense picked up 14 steals and forced 26 turnovers.
Allison Farr led all scorers with 16 points, 12 in the second half, and paced the Pios to a 38-35 advantage on the boards with 7 rebounds. Moon added 10 points and handed out 4 assists. The Pioneers were 0-11 from three-point range.
George Fox, ranked 5th in the USA Today/ESPN/WBCA Division III coaches' poll and 6th in the D3hoops.com poll, won its third straight and defeated the Pioneers for the 23rd straight time while improving to 14-1 overall and 5-1 in the conference. Lewis & Clark fell to 6-7 overall and 2-3 in the league.
The Bruins are off for a week, hosting Pacific Lutheran University next Friday at 6 p.m. in a game that could be for first place in the conference. The Pioneers host Pacific University Saturday at 6 p.m. Both games will be followed by NWC men's games at 8 p.m.