LOS ANGELES – SMC Women's Basketball battled back from a first-half, double-digit deficit against the USC Trojans before the Women of Troy pulled away in the second half of a 71-45 loss for the Gaels.
 
Saint Mary's found themselves down 13 going into the second quarter after the Trojans went 12 of 18 from the field in the first. But the Gaels defense buckled down in the second and held USC to 1 of 19 in the quarter.
 
That defense paired with five different Gaels scoring in the second quarter allowed them to cut it to a four-point USC lead. Amy West flipped in a left-handed shot to make it just 28-24 Trojans with 1:17 to go in the half, before USC hit a pair of free throws to make it 32-26 at the break.
 
Taycee Wedin came out strong in the first half went she went 4 of 5 from three-point range for 12 points. But USC would shut down the Gaels offense in the second half, holding Saint Mary's to 19 points and 7 of 31 shooting (22.7%) and under 50 points for the first time this season.
 
It was just the third meeting ever between the two programs, with SMC winning both previous games. They defeated the Trojans 71-55 on December 19, 2013 in Los Angeles, and 64-58 the following year at home on December 6, 2014.
 
The matchup at USC was the last non-conference game of the season for Saint Mary's.
 
UP NEXT
The Gaels will enjoy a holiday break before resuming action at San Diego on Thursday, December 29 at 6:00 p.m.