PhotosLOS ANGELES – Cal State L.A.'s women's basketball team battled hard, but simply couldn't slow down California Collegiate Athletic Association pre-season favorite Cal Poly Pomona.
The Golden Eagles heated up in the second half and made for an entertaining game in an 80-64 loss to the Broncos in the Eagles Nest. Cal State L.A. (6-8, 5-5 CCAA) had its three-game winning streak snapped, but the Golden Eagles made the Broncos work hard for their victory.
Cal State L.A., which hit 11 of its 3-point attempts on Friday in a win over UC San Diego, knocked down 12 of them on Saturday to stay within striking distance of Cal Poly Pomona (10-4, 8-2 CCAA). The two teams combined for 16 made 3-pointers in the second half, eight by each squad.
Chiara DiMarco had 13 points and four assists to lead the Golden Eagles, while
Bree Parsons had 13 points and three steals and
Samantha Lee hit four 3-pointers for 12 points.
The Broncos relied on two major players on Saturday and Jada Blackwell and Ariel Marsh combined for 57 points. Marsh had a game-high 33 points and hit seven 3-pointers, while Blackwell had 24 points and also hit a pair of 3-pointers.
Franeka Hall also hit a pair of 3-pointers for the Golden Eagles and finished with nine points and four rebounds.
Cal State L.A., which shot just 28 percent in the first half while falling behind, 36-21, finished at 40 percent (24-of-60) for the game. The Broncos were even better, hitting 30-of-55 (54.5 percent). The Golden Eagles were 12-of-30 from behind the 3-point arc, while the Broncos were an efficient 9-of-16, all made 3-pointers coming from Marsh and Blackwell.
Cal Poly Pomona had a 38-28 rebounding edge and committed 21 turnovers to 18 for the Golden Eagles.
The game got off to a rough start and Cal Poly Pomona was whistled for a flagrant foul just three minutes into the game.
Aiwekhoe Okungbowa absorbed the hard foul from behind while driving for a layup and made both free throws for Cal State L.A.'s first points of the game.
A 3-pointer by DiMarco cut the Broncos' lead to 9-5, but Cal Poly Pomona scored the next 13 points to open up a 22-5 lead.
A pair of 3-pointers by Lee sparked a Cal State L.A. run that sliced the deficit to 24-13, but the Broncos opened up leads as large as 18 points before settling for a 36-21 halftime lead.
The second half was full of action – and 3-pointers – as the team's entertained the crowd. The Broncos built leads as large as 21 points, while Cal State L.A. battled back to get to within 11 points on three occasions but could get no closer.
Cal State L.A. will now head back on the road to face Sonoma State on Friday.
