East Bay topped by Academy of Art at CCAA/Pac West Challenge
- December 12, 2010
ARCATA, Calif. - The Cal State East Bay women's basketball team capped the CCAA/Pac West Challenge with a 66-56 loss to Academy of Art on Sunday at Lumberjack Arena. Playing their second of three games this week, the Pioneers (0-6) shot just 27.7 percent against a red-hot Urban Knights squad that nearly toppled Humboldt State on Saturday.
"We took advantage of our free-throw opportunities, hit the offensive glass and stopped Academy of Art's inside game today," CSUEB Head Coach Suzy Barcomb said. "We lost their best shooter too often in the first half, though, and she scored 18. But we did a much better job finding her in the second half."
The Pioneers were led by sophomore Lauren Lucchesi's 15 points on 6-of-14 shooting, including 3-of-5 from three-point range. Amaris Sanders added nine points, while Claudia Nelson, Azizi Dotson and Cassie Coble each pulled down six rebounds to lead East Bay on the boards. The Urban Knights saw a pair of players reach double digits in scoring, led by Nicole DeRosier's game-high 21 points that included six three-pointers.
Cal State East Bay led by as many as three early on the first half thanks to a pair of early buckets from Lucchesi. After Academy of Art regained the lead, the two squads traded buckets through most of the first frame, with AAU never leading by more than eight points. A Maria Dinesen three with 3:42 remaining cut the Urban Knight lead to five, 27-22, before AAU closed the half with a 12-2 run to head to the break with a 39-24 advantage.
Though the Pioneers shot just 20.6 percent from the field in the first half, they made three of their nine three-point attempts and knocked down seven of eight from the free-throw line. The Urban Knights were on fire, however, shooting 53.8 percent from the floor, including 6-of-10 from long range.
The Pioneers scored six unanswered points to start the second frame and cut the Academy of Art lead to just nine before the Urban Knights responded with an 11-2 run that put them up 50-32 with 13:04 left in the second half. East Bay answered with an 11-2 run of their own over the next five minutes, grabbing six rebounds, notching three steals and forcing six AAU turnovers during the run.
The Urban Knights regained a 13-point lead before the Pioneers pulled back to 59-50 thanks to five points from Sanders and a pair of Urban Knight turnovers. Though East Bay closed the gap to as little as seven in the final four minutes, AAU held on to pick up the victory.
The Urban Knights finished the game shooting a blistering 51 percent from the floor and 47.4 percent from three-point range. The Pioneers made the most of their opportunities from the free-throw line, shooting 71.4 percent from the charity stripe, and finished with fewer turnovers than their opponent for the second straight game.
Cal State East Bay returns to action on Tuesday, when it jumps back into CCAA play at UC San Diego. The Pioneers and Tritons are set to tip off at 5:30 p.m. at RIMAC Arena in La Jolla.