SANTA CLARA (3-21; 1-8 WCC) @ LMU (9-13; 2-6 WCC)
Thursday, February 11 - 7 p.m.
Gersten Pavilion (4,146) - Los Angeles, Calif.
SANTA CLARA @ PEPPERDINE (14-8; 5-3 WCC)*
Saturday, February 13 - 2 p.m.
Firestone Fieldhouse (3,104) - Malibu, Calif.
GAMES #25/26: Santa Clara's West Coast Conference schedule brings the Broncos to Los Angeles for games with Loyola Marymount Thursday night and Pepperdine Saturday afternoon. Both games can be heard live on www.santaclarabroncos.com.
TV/RADIO/INTERNET: A live audio broadcast of both games will be available on Santa Clara's official athletics website (SantaClaraBroncos.com). Sam Farber (play-by-play) will call the action courtside from Los Angeles. Additionally, free live scoring can be accessed via GAMETRACKER on (SantaClaraBroncos.com) for Thursday night's game with LMU.
GAME NOTES:
# Jennifer Mountain is in her second season as Santa Clara head coach
# Santa Clara leads the WCC in 3PT FG (6.3 p/g)
# SCU point guard Alyssa Shoji is the WCC leader in 3s - she is coming off a career-high 27-point game against USD
# Santa Clara drew nearly 1,000 fans in its WCC `Pink Zone' game Saturday, which raises awareness for breast cancer research - losing to USD however 67-58
# Both games this week will be `Pink Zone' games at LMU and Pepperdine
# The Broncos are extremely young, 11 of their 15 players are underclassmen
# SCU is trying to snap a four-game losing streak
# SG Meagan Fulps (11.5 ppg) is the top freshman scorer in the WCC
# Fulps was Colorado's 2009 5A High School `Player of the Year' last season
# All-WCC forward Lena Gipson has moved into Santa Clara's all-time top 10 for career rebounds (539), in this just her second season
# LMU escaped with a 60-56 win over Santa Clara at the Leavey Center Jan. 16
# The Lions have lost five-straight and 8 of 11
# If the season ended today, Santa Clara and LMU would play in the first round of the WCC tournament
# Pepperdine is 5-3 in the WCC, winning their last two - both on the road
# UP NEXT: Santa Clara will play local rival USF next Saturday in San Francisco
SANTA CLARA: The Broncos have been more than just competitive - in fact, in position to win games as of late - but has trouble finishing. The team has dropped four-straight since beating USF 54-47 at home on Jan. 23. Santa Clara is starting two freshmen and a sophomore in the backcourt. Consistent scorers PG Alyssa Shoji (13.9 ppg) and SG Meagan Fulps (11.5 ppg) have welcomed freshman guard Telisha Anderson into the starting lineup. Anderson was forced to miss two months (Nov.-Dec.) with an ankle injury. Rookie classmate Ashley Armstrong (4.4 rebounds per game) is the top freshman rebounder in the WCC - giving the team the best young scorers and rebounders the WCC has to offer. So far, that has not translated to wins, but close losses to USD (67-58), St. Mary's (69-62) and Portland (73-65), in their last three outings, saw the team nearly pull an upset. Look for Shoji to play nearly all 40 minutes and shoot from the outside - complementing the inside presence of All-WCC forward Lena Gipson who has led the team in rebounding in 20 of its 24 games.
LMU: The Lions have lost five-straight - their last win was at the Leavey Center in Santa Clara when they beat the Broncos 60-56 on Jan. 16. LMU received a game-high 18 points from Alex Cowling in that win over SCU. She made 7 of 8 shots and went 4-for-4 from the line with the game in the balance. Cowling leads the team in scoring (16.2 ppg) for a Lions team that shoots an efficient .408 percent from the field. LMU is looking to improve on a 3-7 home record this season. They are 0-3 in WCC home games.
PEPPERDINE: The Waves have seemed to benefit from its tough non-conference schedule - having played Kansas, Stanford, Arizona State, San Diego State and Purdue - among others prior to the New Year. All-WCC forward Miranda Ayim scored a season-high 29 points and Pepperdine pressured Santa Clara into 24 turnovers, as the Waves beat the Broncos 83-67 earlier this season at the Leavey Center. Ayim has 57 blocks, averages nearly seven rebounds and scores a team-high 15.5 points per game. The Waves are 5-3 in the WCC and have the same record at home - having played just eight of their 22 games this season at Firestone Fieldhouse.
LAST TIME OUT: Trailing in the second half, visiting San Diego rallied for a 67-58 win over Santa Clara Saturday afternoon. Part of the `WBCA Pink Zone' initiative which raises awareness for breast cancer research, the game drew a season-high crowd at SCU's Leavey Center. San Diego (14-9; 6-3 WCC) became the fourth team in the league to sweep its four games with SCU and USF. The Toreros beat the Broncos in similar fashion January 9th in San Diego, coming back from a second-half deficit to win by 16. Santa Clara (3-21; 1-8 WCC) received a career-high 27 points from sophomore point guard Alyssa Shoji. Shoji made nine field goals, including five triples. The WCC three-point leader - she now has 62 3s on the year, which ties for 8th in SCU single-season history. Maggie Goldenberger scored 10 points and Gipson added 11 rebounds to crack Santa Clara's all-time top 10 list for career rebounds.
RECENT RESULTS/UPCOMING GAMES:
L, 73-65 @ Portland (1/30)
L, 69-62 vs. ST. MARY'S (2/4)
L, 67-58 vs. SAN DIEGO (2/6)
@ Loyola Marymount (2/11)
@ Pepperdine (2/13)
@ San Francisco (2/20)
WCC STANDINGS:
1. #22 Gonzaga (8-0)
2. St. Mary's (8-1)
3. San Diego (6-3)
4. Pepperdine (5-3)
5. Portland (4-4)
6. LMU (2-6)
7. Santa Clara (1-8)
8. USF (0-9)
SCU & WCC LEADERS: Scoring: 9th- Shoji (13.9)/17th-Gipson (11.8)/18th-Fulps (11.5) ... Rebounding: 2nd- Gipson (9.7)/14th-Goldenberger (5.5) ... FG%: 8th- Gipson (.517) ... Assists: 5th- Shoji (2.9) ... FT%: 12th-Fulps (.747)/13th-Shoji (.746) ... 3FG: 1st- Shoji (2.6)/6th- Fulps (1.6) ... Blocks: 9th- Gipson (0.6) ... Offensive Rebounds: 3rd- Gipson (2.8) ... Minutes: 2nd-Shoji (36.0)/5th- Fulps (33.7)/10th- Gipson (31.4)
NCAA LEADERS: Double-Doubles: 21st - Gipson (10) ... Rebounding: 36th- Gipson (9.7) ... 3FG: 41st- Shoji (2.6)
$4,200 RAISED FOR HAITI'S EARTHQUAKE VICTIMS: Donations of nearly $4,200 were raised by the Santa Clara University and USF women's basketball programs last month. All the proceeds went to help the victims of Haiti's devastating earthquake via the American Red Cross. Both teams agreed to initiate a fund-raising drive prior to the local rivalry game Saturday, January 23 at Santa Clara's Leavey Center. Donations were accepted at the main entrances and additional checks were mailed directly to the SCU women's basketball office.
"The support and effort from our community and fans was tremendous," said Santa Clara Women's Basketball Head Coach Jennifer Mountain. "We blew our initial goal out of the water thanks to the generosity of our fans. I want to thank San Francisco Head Coach Tanya Haave, her coaching staff and team for coming together in support of such a good cause. "It is our mission here at Santa Clara to serve. That's what the WCC is all about and I think we represented ourselves well."
BRONCOS TO BE FEATURED ON WCC'S `ROAD TO LAS VEGAS' SERIES: The West Coast Conference is featuring the Santa Clara women's basketball team on its next installment of its `Road to Las Vegas' video series. The league is focusing on SCU's commitment to community service. Each week, the Road To Las Vegas will chronicle each WCC men's and women's basketball team's journey through conference play culminating with the 2010 Zappos.com WCC Basketball Championships at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas on March 5-8. For more information visit wccsports.com.
WCC 2010 ZAPPOS.COM BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS (LAS VEGAS, NV): Tickets for the 2010 Zappos.com West Coast Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Championships at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas are now on sale. The championships will span 4 days - March 5-8, 2010 - and include 14 men's and women's games, with tickets starting at less than $10 per game. The 2009 WCC Basketball Championships were the most highly anticipated championship event in Conference history, reaching a sell out two weeks prior to the tournament last March. The event set championship records for single session attendance (7,845) and overall championship attendance (33,320).
IN THE COMMUNITY: Santa Clara University has a unique relationship with the community in the Bay Area. Through its affiliation with BAWSI (Bay Area Women's Sports Initiative), the Broncos have been afforded the opportunity to aid in the development of young girls as individuals and athletes. BAWSI is a public benefit, nonprofit corporation with a mission to create programs and partnerships through which women athletes bring health, hope and wholeness to our community. Bronco student-athletes spend time each week mentoring young girls at local elementary schools.
ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE: The Bronco program has a storied tradition of academic excellence in its 45 seasons of sponsoring women's basketball. Highlighted by 16 West Coast Conference All-Academic honorees, the Broncos have received numerous academic honors for their hard work both on and off the court. The team GPA last season was 3.14.
NEXT HOME GAME: The Broncos will play just two more home games, hosting No. 22 Gonzaga on Thursday, February 25 at 7 p.m. and Portland, Saturday, February 27 at 2 p.m.
*Pepperdine will host USF on Thurs. Feb. 11
