Feb. 14—Saturday provided a chance for the Gonzaga women’s basketball team to see how far the team has come since conference play began in late December.
Instead, the Bulldogs returned to a problem that has plagued them many times this season — turnovers — and Loyola Marymount enjoyed Gonzaga’s mistakes.
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Loyola Marymount snapped a 36-game losing streak against the Zags with a 72-63 upset at Los Angeles’ Gerston Pavilion, marking its first victory over a team coached by Lisa Fortier.
The win moved the Lions and Zags into a tie atop the West Coast Conference at 11-3 with four games remaining.
Whatever the reason, Loyola Marymount gave the Zags a challenging game, and the Zags defeated the Lions 87-80 in double overtime in the WCC opener on Dec. 28.
Gonzaga tied its season high with 26 turnovers, including eight in both the third and fourth quarters. LMU scored 23 points thanks to Zags turnovers.
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“LMU played a much better game than we did,” Fortier said. “They played the Zags the way we see them all the time, they were passionate and they were able to execute their game plan better than we could. They forced us into 26 turnovers (17 steals). They put pressure on us.”
It was LMU’s first win over Gonzaga in 17 years. The last time the Lions won was on February 7, 2008.
LMU (17-8) is off to its best start in WCC play in 20 years.
The loss ended Gonzaga’s five-game winning streak. A win would move the Zags (19-8) two games ahead of four teams.
Gonzaga’s last lead came with 1:56 left in the third quarter when junior transfer Zeryhia Aokuso hit two free throws to take a 47-44 lead.
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LSU tied the game with a 3-pointer shortly after, and then Angela Matic’s 3-pointer gave the Lions a 50-47 lead.
Gonzaga sophomore guard Allie Turner hit a 3-pointer during a six-game shooting slump to tie the game at 50-50 entering the fourth quarter.
The game featured 11 lead changes and eight ties.
The fourth quarter was all LMU’s game — especially the final four minutes. Sophomore guard Teryn Gardner drained a 3-pointer to pull the Bulldogs within 64-61 with 4 minutes left, but Gonzaga didn’t get another shot.
The Zags missed their final six shots and committed five turnovers in the final 2 minutes and 40 seconds.
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“Overall, the way we responded to their pressure was a big part…it took away from our ability to execute,” Fortier said. “We didn’t have a great overall team game. We could have used a little more from guys here and there.”
Turner made 5 of 8 three-pointers and scored a team-high 19 points. Freshman forward Lauren Whittaker quietly finished with 10 points and eight rebounds. Junior forward Tyler Smith had 12 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists.
Gonzaga hit three consecutive three-pointers and a shot from Whitaker in the second quarter to take its largest lead at 32-25. But Whitaker fouled again with 3:30 left before halftime and was benched.
LMU went on an 8-0 run to bring the score to 34-33 entering halftime.
