by Andre van der Merwe
Daily Lobo
The No. 23 UNM women's basketball team faced its most physical challenge of the season and came out with a victory - and perhaps some bumps and bruises, as well.
The 8-2 Lobos clawed their way past the University of California-Los Angeles 72-63 Saturday at
The Pit.
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It wasn't easy, though, as players from both teams flew all over the court.
UNM senior guard Julie Briody said it was one of the most intense games the Lobos have played this season.
"That's just the way the Pac-10 plays," she said. "They're a really physical team. They like to get up in your face. I thought we did a nice job of playing under control."
The Lobos used a scrappy defense and a late second-half run to pull past the 6-5 Bruins in the Southwest Airlines Shootout championship game. UNM advanced to the championship after defeating Sam Houston State 77-41 on Friday at The Pit.
Saturday's game would not be a cakewalk.
With four starters more than
6-feet tall, UCLA had a size difference in the post, but that didn't concern Flanagan.
"I felt, as the game progressed, that size would not be as much of a factor," he said. "I thought we were in condition to play 40 minutes."
The Lobo defense forced 18 turnovers, converting them into 21 points.
Although the Bruins handled the ball well, they made mistakes the Lobos took advantage of, Flanagan said.
"They passed pretty well, but they throw a lot of one-handed passes, which I'm not a big fan of," he said.
UNM was forced to come back from a big deficit early, after the Bruins went on an 11-0 run to take a 22-12 lead.
However, the Lobos fought back and went on a big run of their own, taking a 25-24 lead after outscoring UCLA 13-2 over a three-minute stretch.
The teams fought back-and-forth, and UNM held a 36-35 halftime lead.
The game stayed close for much of the second half. At the 6:34 mark, Lobo junior Dionne Marsh sat out after her fourth foul while UNM was up 54-53.
With Marsh having to sit almost the rest of the game, Briody and Brandi Kimble sparked the offense as UNM won its seventh straight game.
UCLA's Lindsey Pluimer scored a game-high 22 points for the Bruins. However, the Lobos countered with Marsh, who finished the game with 21 points. Marsh was 5-of-5 from the free-throw line and had a team-high five rebounds.
Marsh said the Bruins' height advantage motivated her to step up her game.
"It makes the game more exciting," she said. "When you're very competitive - I guess I'm kind of that way - it makes you play a lot harder. It makes you want to create your own shot."
Along with Marsh's solid performance, Briody gave the Lobos a big boost in the second half. She scored 17 points, the majority during a three-minute stretch when she scored nine straight points for the Lobos to put her team ahead 61-53 with 4:51 left. Briody was named the MVP of the
tournament.
The five Lobo starters tallied up almost every point, with only seven points coming off the bench. Marsh and Briody were joined in double figures by Kimble, who chipped in 13 and senior guard Katie Montgomery, who added 12.
Flanagan wanted the Lobos to crash the boards more aggressively, as UNM was outrebounded 39-27 against the Bruins.
Flanagan said he was not happy with how his team fought for rebounds.
"The thing that really hurt us was we didn't block out," he said. "They really pretty much kicked us, and they dominated the boards."
