LOS ANGELES - Saint Mary's Women's Basketball will hit the road this week for two match ups, the first being LMU on Thursday night followed by San Diego on Saturday afternoon. The team is looking to bring last Saturday's momentum and success on their penultimate WCC road trip of the season.
Saint Mary's is hungry for redemption against LMU, as they lost the first game of this series 66 to 48 at home. The Gaels hosted and won the last match up against USD last month, 67-59. They were led by freshman, Zeriyah Auokso who recorded 19 points against the Toreros. Auokso has been an offensive threat this season, averaging 11.1 points per game in her first season.
Maia Jones captured the WCC 2023-2024 season-high in points after an outstanding 31 point performance against Pepperdine, which earned her the Freshman of the Week Award as well.
THE DETAILS
Saint Mary's (11-15, 4-8) at LMU (9-15, 4-8)
Thursday, February 22 at 7:00 p.m.
Gersten Pavilion, Los Angeles, CA
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Saint Mary's (11-15, 4-8) at University of San Diego (7-18, 3-9)
Saturday, February 24 at 2:00 p.m.
Jenny Craig Pavilion, San Diego, CA
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LAST TIMEOUT
Saint Mary's earned their largest win of the season against Pepperdine last Saturday. The Gaels dominated from the opening minute and secured a 75-47 victory over the Waves.
SMC was off to a strong offensive start, and with a combined defensive effort they finished the first quarter with a 20-5 advantage. The Gaels shot 57.1% from FG while holding Pepperdine to just 13.3%.
Saint Mary's pushed their lead to 25, and Pepperdine simply had no answer for the Gaels. Saint Mary's took a 40-13 lead into halftime. At the end of the first half, Maia Jones was the leading scorer with 22 points after shooting 5-8 from the three point line. Although LMU had 34 points in the second half, it was certainly not enough to beat the Gaels.
SMC held Pepperdine to 29.8% from FG and 16.7% from three this game. Maia Jones led the Gaels to victory, with a career best 31 points after going 6-9 from the three point line. She now holds the team's scoring record for the season and rightfully earned the WCC Freshman of the Week Award.
ABOUT LMU
Senior forward Alexis Mark has been leading LMU in scoring this season with 265 points and is averaging 11 points and seven assists per game. However, she has scored a total of seven points in her last two games against USD and Gonzaga. In WCC play this season, Mark is currently 15th in points and 7th in rebounds. She led the Lions in their win against SMC last month with 18 points on 5-10 shooting.
Amaya Oliver is another leading force for LMU, and she is averaging nine points per game and leads the Lions in blocks this season with 23 total.
LMU Women's Basketball has been struggling recently, and is currently on a four game losing streak. Their last win was from January 27th, 2023 against Pepperdine, who are currently last in the WCC. The Lions are looking to turn things around as they host Saint Mary's on Thursday.
ABOUT SAN DIEGO
San Diego is currently ranked 8th in the WCC. In WCC play this season, Veronica Sheffey is currently 11th in scoring as she is averaging 12.7 points per game and is 3rd in assists with five per game. In 2023, Sheffey earned a spot on the WCC All Freshman Team. She had her career best, 23 points against San Diego State earlier this season.
Kasey Neubert is second in the WCC this season in rebounding, as she is averaging 10.3 boards per game. She is averaging 9.7 points per game this season, but earned her season high in points against Saint Mary's, as she recorded 18 points in 40 mins. The red shirt senior earned all WCC Honorable Mention in the 2022-2023 season.
The Toreros are currently on a two game win streak, as they are coming off a 20 point win against Pepperdine and a 16 point win against LMU. They are looking to avoid being swept by the Gaels on Saturday afternoon.
