Box score (PDF)
 
SEATTLE – The Simon Fraser Clan went long – and those timely treys ultimately left the Seattle Pacific Falcons short.
 
Simon buried 13 shots from 3-point range, including three in a row to start a game-ending 17-4 scoring run, and went on to a 75-68 Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's basketball victory on Homecoming Saturday in Brougham Pavilion.
 
Sophomore forward Natalie Hoff, in just her second start of the season, pumped in a career-high 16 points and pulled down six rebounds. She was joined in double-digit scoring by junior forward Ashlynn Burgess with 15 and senior guard Hailee Bennett with 12.
 
But the Falcons (7-15, 5-9 GNAC), who were up by 15 early in the second quarter and had forged a 64-58 advantage midway through the fourth on Iron Coaching Court, tallied just four points in the final 5 minutes, 43 seconds of the game – all from the free throw line.
 
Simon Fraser hit 4 of 7 from the field and 6 of 6 at the foul line during the decisive stretch.
 
"We had some missed assignments as a team, and it allowed their players to get going," SPU coach Mike Simonson said. "You can't do that if you want to beat a tough, gritty team. Kudos to Simon Fraser – I'm so impressed with their grit and ability to execute when it's win-the-game time.
 
"We've got to learn from it and strive to be just like that."
 
HOT START
For the second straight game, SPU came out with a solid first half. But this time, instead of seven ties and 14 lead changes that marked the opening 20 minutes of Thursday's contest against Western Washington, the Falcons were able to build a commanding led.
 
 

Up 24-15 at the end of the first quarter, Seattle Pacific extended it to 30-15 on a lay-in by Hoff and two lay-ins by Burgess.
 
Back-to-back treys by Simon Fraser's Emma Kramer cut it to 30-21. It eventually dwindled all the down to four at 32-28 before the Falcons bumped it back up to eight by halftime, 41-33.
 
The Clan then put up the first seven points to begin the third quarter, getting within 41-40. From there to the end of the quarter, the score was tied three times and the lead changed hands six times before SPU, on a 3-pointer from the left of the lane by Bennett, took a 57-56 edge into the final quarter.
 
Breaks kept going the way of the Falcons. Simon Fraser's Jessica Jones, the second-leading scorer in the GNAC at 17.1 points per game who had 12 in the third quarter to help shoot her team back into it, was called for her third foul with 8:50 left.
 
About a minute later, a bad inbounds pass went all the way out to midcourt, wither SPU's Rachel Berg raced to pick it up and went for the lay-in and a 60-56 lead. At 61-58, a Madi Hingston 3-point attempt from the right of the lane bounced off the rim – but then dropped in for a six-point margin at the 5:43 mark.
 
Consecutive treys by Georgia Swant tied it at 64-64. The Falcons took one more lead at 66-64 on a pair of free throws by Burgess with 3:28 left. But then Jones drained a WNBA-length 3 from the top of the key to put the Clan up 67-66, and they stayed ahead the rest of the way.
 
"The first quarter and a half, we executed our offense. That was about tied for the best we've had all year, and to see them doing that was really encouraging and exciting," Simonson said. "The second half, they made some adjustments that slowed us down. Ultimately, we responded decently to them, but when the going gets tough, the tough get going. In crunch time, there are some things we just needed to execute a little bit better."
 
BY THE NUMBERS
-- After a 54 percent first half from the field (17 of 31), SPU hit 32 percent in the second half (9 of 28) and finished at 44 percent for the game (26 of 59). Simon Fraser was the exact opposite: 32 percent in the first half, (9 of 28) 53.8 in the second half (14 of 26) for a final mark of 42.6 (23 of 54).
-- More than half of Simon Fraser's offense was from behind the arc – 13 of its 23 field goals, and 30 of its 54 shots. Jessica Jones was 7 of 12 from long range. In fact, she took just one shot inside the arc, and wound up with 21 points.
-- The Clan were just as deadly from the foul line, hitting 94 percent (16 of 17). SPU was 8 of 10.
-- Natalie Hoff's 16 points beat her previous career high of 11. "She did a really good job of getting to the right spot, her teammates gave her the ball, and she finished well," Mike Simonson said. "I've always said she's one of our best interior scorers, and to see her finally put it together was really exciting."
 
UP NEXT
A crucial road trip to Oregon awaits the Falcons. They visit Western Oregon in Monmouth on Thursday at 5:15 p.m., then play at Concordia-Portland next Saturday at 8:30 p.m.

 
NCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Saturday, Feb. 8, 2020
Brougham Pavilion / Seattle, Wash.
 
Simon Fraser 75, Seattle Pacific 68
 
SIMON FRASER (16-8, 13-3 GNAC)
Hart 4-10 0-0 10, Nwabuko 2-4 1-2 5, Drynan 1-4 4-4 6, Swant 3-6 2-2 10, Jones 7-13 0-0 21, Killins 0-1 0-0 0, Klassen 0-2 0-0 0, Kramer 2-3 0-0 6, Wisotzki 1-3 2-2 4, Sands 3-7 5-5 11, Carey 0-1 2-2 2. Totals 23-54 16-17 75.
 
SEATTLE PACIFIC (7-15, 5-9 GNAC)
Hoff 7-9 2-2 16, Burgess 5-8 4-4 15, Bennett 4-11 0-0 12, HIngston 2-11 0-0 5, Alter 3-9 0-0 7, Berg 1-4 1-2 3, Rexach Roure 1-2 1-2 3. Brennan 1-2 0-0 3, Brundidge 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 26-59 8-10 68.
 
Simon Fraser                      15          18          23          19          -- 75
Seattle Pacific                   24          17          16          11          -- 68
 
3-point goals – Simon 13-30 (Hart 2-5, Drynan 0-2, Swant 2-5, Jones 7-12, Killins 0-1, Kramer 2-2, wisotzki 0-2, Sands 0-1), SPU 8-24 (Burgess 1-1, Bennett 4-7, Hingston 1-7, Alter 1-5, Berg 0-2, Brennan 1-2). Fouled out – Simon: Jones. SPU: Brundidge, Bennett. Rebounds – Simon 31 (Jones 6, Sands 6), SPU 30 (Hoff 6, Burgess 6, Hingston 6). Assists – Simon 9 (Jones 4), SPU 19 (5 players with 3). Turnovers – Simon 16, SPU 17. Total fouls – Simon 16, SPU 20. Technical fouls – None. Attendance – 253.
 
 
Next game
Seattle Pacific at Western Oregon
Thursday, Feb. 13     5:15 p.m.
New P.E. Building / Monmouth, Ore.