SEATTLE -- Good things happen when the defense forces turnovers. And the Seattle Pacific Falcons forced plenty of them on Thursday night against Western Oregon.
Kelsey Hill scored 15 points, getting five of those during a 13-2 Seattle Pacific scoring run to open the second half, and the 17th-ranked Falcons pulled away for a 65-48 Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball victory against Western Oregon in Brougham Pavilion.
Hill (Portland, Ore.) hit 7 of 14 from the floor, and also pulled down six rebounds for the 17th-ranked Falcons (16-4, 9-2 GNAC), who won their fourth straight game.
The score was tied 28-28 at halftime after Seattle Pacific saw a nine-point lead vanish during an 8½-minute scoreless drought, as Western Oregon went on a 13-0 run to go from 22-13 down to 26-22 ahead.
But Daesha Henderson (Snohomish, Wash./Snohomish HS) converted back-to-back steals into lay-ins just 11 seconds apart at the outset of the second half, putting the Falcons ahead to stay, 32-28.
That started the 13-2 run, during which SPU got 10 points off of Wolves turnovers.
“Our goal was to force 25 turnovers and have only 19 (of our own),” Falcons coach Julie van Beek said. “We met our goal defensively." (WOU had 27 turnovers, SPU had 22).
It was a markedly different SPU performance during the final 20 minutes, when the Falcons shot 60 percent (15 of 25) and controlled the boards, 16-10, allowing Western Oregon just two offensive rebounds.
“The first half, I don't know why, but we were a little bit sluggish," van Beek said. "The second half, we challenged them to play the way we practiced. We had a great week of practice.”
Of Western Oregon's 27 turnovers, 16 came during the second half. The Falcons converted those into 18 points. For the game, Seattle Pacific tallied 29 points off turnovers.
Maddie Maloney (Issaquah, Wash./Skyline HS) added 11 points, five steals and three blocks for SPU, and Megan Hoisington (Bremerton, Wash./Central Kitsap HS) chipped in 10 points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals.
SPU senior forward Kelsey Burns returned to action for the first time in three games after an injury and got in 20 minutes of action off the bench. She had three points and three assists.
“I like the way Kelsey came back, not having played,” van Beek said. “She had a good week of practice and had some really nice assists.”
The Falcons, who shot 50 percent from the floor (28 of 56) had assists on 23 of those baskets. Henderson led the way with six, to go along with seven steals and seven points. Freshman Jordan Harazin (Colfax, Wash./Colfax HS) handed out four assists.
Katie Torland led Western Oregon (8-13, 3-7 GNAC) with 21 points. Torland made it a double-double with 10 rebounds. The Wolves have lost three in a row.
SPU outscored the Wolves during the second half, 37-20. Thursday's game was the fourth in a row and seventh in the last eight that the Falcons have kept their opponent below 60 points.
Seattle Pacific had the edge on the boards, 33-29, led by the seven of reserve center Melissa Reich (Bothell, Wash./Bellevue Christian HS).
In fact, SPU's bench came up big overall, contributing 19 points, 13 rebounds, eight assists, and three steals. Nyesha Sims had eight points, five boards and three steals in 16 minutes.
SPU now has won 23 straight games against Western Oregon, a streak that began during the 1990-91 season.
The Falcons have a bye on Saturday, then return to action next Thursday at home against national No. 1-ranked Alaska Anchorage at 5:15 p.m. in the first game of a doubleheader, followed by the SPU men against Anchorage at 7:30 p.m.
NCAA Women's Basketball
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Brougham Pavilion/Seattle, Wash.
(17) Seattle Pacific 65, Western Oregon 48
WESTERN OREGON (8-13, 3-7 GNAC
Chase 1-3 0-2 2, Cordern 0-3 0-0 0, Torland 7-15 3-6 21, Wilson 6-11 0-0 13, Zahler 2-7 0-2 5, Nordstrom 1-5 0-0 2, Goss 0-1 0-0 0, Bellando 1-1 0-0 2, Hawk 1-3 0-0 3. Totals 19-49 3-10 48.
SEATTLE PACIFIC (16-4, 9-2 GNAC)
Hoisington 5-8 0-0 10, Maloney 4-8 2-2 11, Hill 7-14 1-2 15, Harazin 1-4 0-0 3, Henderson 3-3 0-0 7, Gorman 1-3 0-0 3, Burns 1-7 0-0 3, Smith 0-0 0-0 0, Sims 4-6 0-0 8, Reich2-3 1-2 5. Totals 28-56 4-6 65.
Western Oregon...28 20 -- 48
Seattle Pacific......28 37 -- 65
3-point goals -- WOU 7-17 (Corder 0-1, Torland 4-6, Wilson 1-3, Zahler 1-3, Nordstrom 0-1, Goss 0-1, Hawk 1-2), SPU 5-14 (Maloney 1-2, Harazin1-4, Hendeson 1-1, Gorman 1-2, Burns 1-4, Sims 0-1. Fouled out -- None. Rebounds -- WOU 29 (Torland 10), SPU 33 (Reich 7, Hill 6, Harazin 6). Assists -- WOU 15 (Wilson 4), SPU 23 (Henderson 6, Harazin 4). Technical fouls -- None. Total fouls --WOU 11, SPU 11. A -- 217.
