ARIZONA WILDCATS
COMMUNICATION SERVICES
LOS ANGELES – Arizona (2-1) got off to a good start, but Loyola Marymount (4-0) was too strong down the stretch and came away with an 84-70 victory at the Gersten Center on Tuesday night.
Marlee Kyles caught fire in the fourth quarter as she scored 12 in the final period to give her 18 for the game. The freshman has now scored at least 17 points in two of her first three games. JaLea Bennett scored 17 first-half points en route to 19 for the game to go along with her five rebounds.
Although she didn’t shoot well from the field, Sam Thomas was all over the place for the Wildcats with 10 rebounds, five assists, four steals and two blocks to go with her six points. Lucia Alonso did what she does best as she knocked down three three-pointers, giving her 13 points for the game.
The Wildcats came out firing in the first quarter as they got out to a 21-7 lead on the back of Bennett’s 12 points. LMU made up some ground in the second quarter as they outscored the Wildcats 20-14, cutting Arizona’s lead to 35-27 as the two teams made their ways to their respective locker rooms.
Loyola Marymount took control in the third quarter as they held Arizona scoreless for the first eight minutes of the period. Meanwhile, the Lions went on to score 25 points in the quarter with 11 coming from Cheyanne Wallace. There were a lot of points scored in the fourth quarter (61), but the scoring was relatively even and the Lions had a comfortable lead the for the entire period.
Arizona will stay in Los Angeles for the rest of the week in preparation for the first game of the Warner Center Marriott Thanksgiving Basketball Classic against TCU on Friday, Nov. 24, which will take place at Cal State Northridge. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. MST.
