Box Score SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Dominican women's basketball defeated the University of Hawaii at Hilo 86-55 Saturday at the Conlan Center.
The Penguins (13-5, 7-3 PacWest) finished with five players in double-figures, led by junior
Natalie Diaz with 22 points. Junior
Alanna Scott shot 5-7 from 3-point territory, finishing with 15 points while senior
Alexis Price added 12. Freshman
Julia Razo tallied 11 points, as did sophomore
Vanessa Cruz, who also racked up 10 assists for her first career double-double. Sara Shimizu led the Vulcans (6-6, 4-5 PacWest) with 16 points.
It took both teams some time to warm up offensively. Razo knocked down a corner triple to put Dominican ahead 5-4 nearly halfway through the first quarter. Scott followed with a 3-pointer of her own on the Penguins' next possession to give Dominican an 8-6 advantage. Razo later finished a drive to the rim with a left-handed layup to put the Penguins ahead 13-12. A 3-pointer in the final minute from Alyssa Movchan helped UHH take a 19-17 lead after one period.
Cruz continued Dominican's hot shooting from behind the 3-point line as she buried one from the top of the key early in the second quarter, putting the Penguins in front 22-19. Diaz followed that up with a spinning post move and Scott added a triple on the Penguins next possession to make it 27-21. Price knocked down a pair of 3-pointers later in the quarter, one to start a 12-0 run and the other to cap it, helping Dominican take a 43-26 lead into the break.
The Penguins' lead ballooned to 21 early in the third quarter as Diaz put in a turnaround jumper, giving Dominican a 51-30 lead. Back-to-back baskets in the paint from Cruz then stretched the advantage to 55-32. Scott's fifth 3-pointer of the afternoon later put Dominican ahead 61-37 and the Penguins held a 65-41 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Dominican looked to put the Vulcans away early in the final frame as Diaz put in a basket in the paint to give the Penguins a 69-41 advantage and force UHH to take a timeout. UHH was unable to get much closer as Dominican put them away for their third straight win.
The Penguins shot 56.5 percent from the field while holding the Vulcans to just 32.8 percent shooting. Dominican finished 10-24 from 3-point range and outscored UHH 38-10 in the paint.
The Penguins take the court again Wednesday as they travel to Notre Dame de Namur for a 5:30 tip. Live stats and video will be available online.
