BRAND NEW START
Box Score
RIVERSIDE, Calif. --- Although it was senior night, freshman Brandie McCann drew the attention, with a game-high 27 points, including a 10-for-10 effort from the free-throw line, as the Lancers beat Concordia, 79-71 at the Van Dyne Gym.
The Lancers win their fourth in a row, closing out the GSAC regular season at 17-12, 9-11 to advance to round one of the GSAC Tournament. California Baptist travels to the NAIA's No. 8-ranked Point Loma Nazarene for round one of the GSAC Tournament Wednesday night (Feb. 28) at 7:30 p.m.
On the outside looking into the playoff picture 2 weeks ago, the Lancers' 4-straight wins catapult them into the playoffs as the No. 7 seed, avoiding a potential third consecutive first-round postseason matchup with the NAIA's top-rated Vanguard.
“I'm really proud of the way the girls have stepped up over the past 2 weeks,” said California Baptist head coach Steve Sain. “Our team knew they had their backs to the wall, but they've embraced that challenge big-time. It's great to get that momentum going in our favor as we head into the playoffs.”
McCann's layup initiated an 11-0 run down the stretch, as Jessica Fisiikava drained a trey and Nicole Davis chipped in with a layup to give the Lancers a 68-56 lead on Adaobi Gwacham's layup with 5:32 on the clock.
Gwacham notched a double-double, with 11 points and a career-high 16 rebounds to wrap up her home career at CBU. Fellow senior Fisiikava scored 17 points and was 4-for-9 from beyond the arc, while Paris Michel grabbed 4 rebounds and a steal.
“Adaobi did a great job for us tonight,” said Sain, who brings his third-straight team to the GSAC Tournament. “She was finishing nicely on the inside and really battling for those rebounds. These 3 girls really played like the seniors they are tonight.”
CBU cruised into the final minute with a 73-64 cushion, but Joial Griffith, who scored 11 points, buried a pair of shots to bring the game within 5, at 76-71, with just 16 seconds on the clock. The Lancers buckled down, however as Gwacham and freshman guard Kristina Mitchell combined for 3 conversions at the charity stripe to hold down the fort in the final seconds of the game.
GSAC Player of the Week Davis, who scored 16 points and dealt out 10 assists, intercepted an Eagle pass and laid up a bucket to widen the Lancer advantage to 61-56 with 7:36 remaining, and Fisiikava nailed a 3-pointer to follow her up, as CBU led 64-56 with 6 minutes left.
Michel's block set the stage for Gwacham's layup to make the score 53-45 with 14:55 remaining, as the Lancers controlled the momentum early in the second half. Monica Quan helped keep the Eagles in the game with 8 of her 10 points coming in the first 15 minutes of the second half.
The Lancers out-shot Concordia, 57 percent (13-for-23) to 41 percent (16-for-39), in the second half, including a 3-for-9 effort compared to the Eagles' 3-for-16 showing from beyond the arc.
Fisiikava's 3-pointer on the Lancers' first possession of the ballgame kick-started a 10-2 CBU run for starters, in the first half. The Lancers hit 2 of their first 3 attempts from beyond the arc, but were just one for their next 5 3-point tries, opening the door for Concordia to eventually take the lead at 19-17 on Priscilla Angeloni's jumper at 9:27.
The Eagles had tied up the score at 21-21 with just over 7:30 left, but Fisiikava's 3-pointer temporarily gave the Lancers a 24-21 advantage, as the game was tied 5 times throughout the period.
The Lancers made their living from 10 first-half turnovers, scoring 17 points off Eagle giveaways in the period. Megan Bradford's steal at 3 minutes generated a layup by Gwacham that stretched the CBU lead to 34-30.
Davis scored 10 points and dealt out 5 assists, while Fisiikava's 11 points and 3 treys led the way for CBU, which shot 44 percent (13-for-32) from the field to survive a 62 percent (16-for-26) Concordia showing heading to the break.
