SAN FRANCISCO – The San Francisco women's basketball picked up from last weekend and earned a 64-45 win over Cal State Monterey Bay to open conference action. The Gators only trailed for the first minute of the game and never looked back.
- The Gators now sit at 3-2 and 1-0 in the CCAA while the Otters fall to 1-4 and 0-1 in the CCAA
- SF State opened up Conference action with a win for the first time since the 2018-19 season.
- The defense helped force 26 turnovers while making 14 steals. Taimane Lesa-Hardee and Jolene Armendariz each had four.
- The Gators only turned the ball over 12 times, a new season low.
- Three players scored in double-digits. Samaria Velazquez had a game high 15, Lesa-Hardee had 12 and Mya Blake had 10.
- The Otters Outrebounded the Gators 38-28
After the Otters made a pair of free throw on the opening possession, the Gators defense suffocated them the rest of the quarter and held them to eight points. The Otters had eight turnovers in the first. A three from Ashley Hart gave the Gator's their biggest lead of the quarter at 17-4. The Otters would come within four several times during the second quarter only for the Gators to pull away. A driving layup from Velazquez put the lead back in double figures as the Gators took a 34-23 lead into halftime.
A three from Blake opened the third quarter for the Gators. The Otters responded with a jumper of their own.
Both teams struggled to score in the third with the Otters holding the one-point edge with 11 points in the quarter.
Lesa-Hardee had back-to-back baskets to open the fourth to extend the Gator's lead to 49-34. Rayshanti McNeal Price scored a basket for the Otters but the Gators scored a pair of quick baskets to go up 52-36 a force a timeout. The Gators would lead by as much as 23 in the fourth quarter.
"Our girls came in and executed the game plan. Definitely a scrappy game." said Head Coach Natasha Smith. "All that matters at the end of the day is that we stay together and play hard. Now we need to get ready for Humboldt."
San Francisco State hits the road to face Humboldt State Thursday, December 2. Tip-off is slated for 5:30 p.m.. The match will be broadcast free on the CCAA Network with live stats available at sfstategators.com. Updates will also be available on Twitter at @sfstate_wbb.
