THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. - Cal Lutheran became the first conference team to defeat Occidental this season earning a 54-50 home victory on Saturday night. The Regals used solid defense to end a 10-game losing streak to the Tigers.
Box Score: CLU 54, OXY 50 - F
Cal Lutheran would be in a hole to start the game having to face the conference's top defense against 3-pointers without sharp shooter Chelsey Hastigan. The Regals made just 2-of-14 first half triples and 6-of-24 in regulation. Cal Lutheran would need solid defense of their own, and a little luck to defeat the SCIAC unbeaten.
In a game that saw 13 lead changes and six ties, Cal Lutheran and Occidental were never separated by more than seven points, which happened twice in favor of the Regals by way of a Jazmyne Porter layup in the paint and with 3:52 to play and a Channing Fleischmann free throw with five seconds to play to clinch the game.
Fleischmann with a team-high 17 points and eight rebounds in the win. Her second 3-pointer of the night halted a 6-0 scoring run that pulled the Tigers to within one and pushed the Regals back ahead by four with two minutes left in regulation.
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Occidental nearly responded with a three of its own in the final minute to cut the deficit to a single point. Following a scramble for the rebound Occidental's Michelle Lo was open as she knocked down a 3-pointer to pull the Tigers within one. However the Occidental bench called time out moments before releasing the shot, negating the basket.
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Occidental did not score again until a time expiring 3-pointer by Makenzie Brandon ended the game. She led all players with 20 points and 14 rebounds playing the full 40 minutes. However the CLU defense held firm forcing her to score using 21 shots from the field and to commit eight turnovers.
In the early going it was a defensive battle, in which CLU took a 6-2 lead, but the Tigers found a groove and converted that into a 13-9 advantage. The Regals regained the lead when Fleischmann connected on all four of her free throws after the OXY bench was called for a technical foul with 7:43 in the opening period.
The teams remained neck in neck, never separated by more than a point for the remainder of the half. A pair of Stephanie Scamman free-throws with 37.8 seconds to go gave the Black and Orange a 23-22 advantage at the break.
Both teams succumbed to the top-notch defense with CLU and Oxy shooting 23.3 and 29.2 percent from the floor, respectively. CLU out-rebounded Occidental 23-19 in the opening 20 minutes. The Regals came away with 10 offensive boards that they were able to convert into 12 points.
The second stanza saw another see-saw stanza of basketball. Each team shot better with CLU hitting on 37.5 percent of their shots while the Tigers finished the second half at a 33.3 clip.
Fleischmann scored 13 second half points to finish with a team leading 17. The junior converted 9-for-10 free-throw chances while tying for a team-high eight rebounds. Erica Whitley pulled down eight boards as well and chipped in with 12 points, three assists and three steals, both to lead the Regals.
Rachel Heagy came off the bench to finish with seven rebounds, including a game high four offensive while adding 10 points as the third Cal Lutheran player in double figures. Porter also came off the bench to spice things up, adding seven points and four rebounds for CLU.
Occidental (13-3, 5-1 SCIAC) was paced by Makenzie Brandon both offensively and defensively with a game-high 20 point, 14 rebound double-double, adding two steals, a block and an assist. Michelle Lo scored 14 points with a pair if steals and Katelyn Rowe tallied three blocks for the Tigers.
Cal Lutheran (10-6, 4-2) will be back inside Gilbert Arena for the first of two home games this week on Tuesday, Jan. 24 at 7:30 p.m. when they face off against the Chapman (11-7) Panthers.