SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Santa Clara women's basketball won a shootout 89-84 over San Diego Saturday afternoon to move to 10-1 at home this season.
The Broncos (11-9, 5-5 WCC) held a 16-point lead midway through the third quarter but a furious comeback from the Toreros (10-12, 2-8 WCC) saw them get on top by as many as three in the fourth. Santa Clara would respond to the deficit with an 8-0 run and went 9-of-10 from the free throw line over the final 32 seconds to ice the win.
Merle Wiehl and Lindsey VanAllen did the heavy lifting for a Broncos offense that shot a season-best 61.2-percent from the field, including 8-of-15 from beyond the arc. Wiehl set a career-high with 29 points on 9-of-11 shooting, 4-of-5 from deep, and 7-of-8 from the free throw line while adding four rebounds and four assists. VanAllen scored 27 on 9-of-15 shooting from the field and was 8-of-8 from the charity stripe.
San Diego began its comeback with a 9-0 run in just over a minute midway through the third quarter. Jordyn Edwards scored the first five of the run and after a couple buckets for the Broncos, Steph Gorman connected on back-to-back 3-pointers to make the score 58-53.
The Toreros then started the fourth with seven-straight to take their first lead since the first quarter. After five in a row from Wiehl, another 6-0 run put San Diego up 72-69 before the Broncos started their 8-0 run to take the lead for good.
Gorman led the Toreros with 17 points but was just 5-of-17 from the field. Sydney Hunter scored 15 of 6-of-8 shooting and Edwards added 14 while going 4-of-8 from the field. As a team, San Diego shot 48.4-percent and was 8-of-16 from beyond the arc.
The game stayed close in part due to the offensive glass. The Toreros held an 18-6 edge on the offensive boards and turned it into a 25-9 edge in second chance points. In all, the Broncos, whose plus-6.8 rebound differential coming into the game was second in the West Coast Conference, were outrebounded 31-23. It was just the fourth time this season they have been outrebounded.
Another important factor was the Broncos got back Ashley Hiraki after missing the last four games and Lara Edmanson and Lana Hollingsworth who each missed the last three. Edmanson scored nine on 3-of-3 shooting and Hollingsworth scored seven while also going 3-of-3. Hiraki scored six and dished out a team-high four assists. As a whole, Santa Clara had 20 assists on 30 made baskets.
San Diego started the game on fire, scoring nine in a row to get out on top 11-2 but Santa Clara had an 8-0 run right after the teams traded baskets, led by VanAllen's four-point play, to get right back in it. The Broncos would use a 7-0 run late in the period to get out on top and ended the quarter with a 21-20 advantage.
The second quarter was controlled by the Broncos who used a 6-0 run early and an 8-0 run late in the period to get the lead out to double-figures for the first time and went into the locker room on top 40-31.
NOTES
- Santa Clara is now 39-42 all-time against San Diego.
- Lindsey VanAllen is now at 1,149 career points, good for 13th all-time at Santa Clara. Next is Ashlyn Herlihy (2017-21) with 1,163.
- The Broncos were without Lexie Pritchard who was injured at Long Beach State. Her return is uncertain. Ashlee Maldonado is also out and will miss the entire season.
- Ashley Hiraki returned after missing the last four games. Lana Hollingsworth and Lara Edmanson returned after missing the last three.
NEXT UP
Santa Clara stays home and takes on Saint Mary's Monday at 6 p.m.
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