Feb. 5, 2009
Box Score
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Paced by a 17-point performance form senior center Amber Sprague, the University of Sa Diego women's basketball team snapped its four-game losing skid with a 70-54 win over Santa Clara University Thursday evening in a West Coast Conference game.
With the win the Toreros improve to 13-9 overall and even their record in WCC action at 4-4. With the loss, the Broncos fall to 2-21 overall and fall to 0-8 in the WCC.
Sprague led the team with her 17 points on 7-for-14 from the floor and pulled down five rebounds. Kiva Herman scored 15 points to become just the 11th player in school history to eclipse the 1,000 career point mark. Freshman guard Dominique Conners also scored 15 points and pulled down a team-best six rebounds. As a team, USD shot 50 percent from the field and out rebounded the Broncos 29-26.
In the first half, a Kiva Herman jumper ignited a 6-3 San Diego run to open the game over the first two minutes of action. The Broncos were able to eventually tie things up on a few occasions in the early going, and with the score knotted 13-13, a Herman jumper then sparked a 9-2 USD run that was capped on a Sara VanderHorst 3-pointer to give the Toreros a 22-15 lead with 9:14 remaining in the half.
The Broncos then began to slowly chip away at the lead and pulled back to within three at 26-23 with 5:40 left, but a Conners jumper then sparked a 8-3 San Diego run that was capped on a Emily Hatch lay-up to give San Diego its biggest lead of that half at 34-26 with 3:19 to go.
SCU would then pull back to within four going into the break down 34-30.
In the second half, The Broncos quickly tied things up at 35-35, but that ignited a 13-2 USD run that was started with a Conners free-throw and capped on a Herman three-point play to give USD a comfortable 11-point lea at 38-37 with 12:57 left in the game.
USD would maintain that lead over the next four minutes before a Conners lay-up then sparked a 10-4 run to give the Toreros a 20-point lead at 66-46. San Diego never looked back as they cruised their way to a 40-54 win.
The Toreros will return to action on Saturday as they head to San Francisco for a 2 p.m. game against the University of San Francisco.
