The562’s coverage of Long Beach State athletics for the 2023-24 season is sponsored by Marilyn Bohl.
The562’s coverage of Long Beach State basketball for the 2023-24 season is sponsored by Nelson Farris.
Long Beach State has been waiting all month for a quarter like the one they had to begin Saturday’s Big West matchup against UC Riverside.
After scoring just three points in the first quarter against the Highlanders back on Jan. 6 in Riverside, the Beach came out scorching on their home floor to take a commanding 17-point lead after the first 10 minutes of the rematch.
Their work was far from over, however, and the Beach had to scratch and claw until the final whistle to earn a needed 54-52 victory over the Highlanders. The win ended a six-game losing streak to give the Beach their first win of 2024.
“Our young ladies came out and fought today,” said LBSU head coach Amy Wright. “Unfortunately, we had our normal lull of the five-point quarter that we’ve been trying to avoid, but you saw you saw them coming together in the good and then you saw them come together in the bad. I think that was key, when things weren’t going our way we had a collective unit of five on the court that were coming together and fighting through that, and being disciplined in what we needed to do defensively and offensively.”
Sydney Woodley led the way for the Beach with 18 points on 6/9 shooting, while also adding a team-high seven rebounds, seven steals, and four assists. Savannah Tucker was also in double-digits with 10 points for the Beach. As a team, LBSU made 8 of 14 three-point attempts (57.1 percent) and went 8-for-10 at the free throw line.
The Beach raced out to a 10-2 lead by hitting each of their first four shot attempts, and sustained that hot shooting for most of the opening quarter. Long Beach started 5/5 on three-point attempts, with five different players connecting from deep.
On the other end of the floor, the Beach were locking up UC Riverside defensively, slowing down the Highlanders offense while forcing seven turnovers. Those giveaways led directly to 10 Long Beach points, and most of LBSU’s shots were taken early in the shot clock.
UCR settled in after their shaky start, going on an immediate 15-0 run at the start of the second quarter–nearly wiping out the deficit entirely. LBSU scored just five points in the second, and held a 26-23 halftime edge.
The Highlanders continue to control the game after the half, taking their first lead less than three minutes into the third quarter. UCR led by as many as five, and held a 41-39 advantage going into the final quarter.
Woodley set the tone immediately for that final quarter, stealing the opening inbounds pass and racing down for a layup to tie the score at 41-all. Three minutes later, another steal for Woodley set up Savannah Tucker for a breakaway layup, putting the Beach back in front.
“I think (Woodley)’s beyond the conference, and that’s not to diss the conference, it’s just she’s rattled up a lot of really good things on that side of the basketball,” Wright said of Woodley’s defensive bona fides. “Keeping her motivated is the biggest thing … We do want to keep the big picture for her, and then also, all Sydney’s going to care about is getting the win. She’s going to do whatever she can to help the team win.”
Sparked by Woodley’s defensive prowess, LBSU scored the first 10 points of the quarter, forcing a Riverside timeout with 5:01 to play after opening up a 49-41 advantage.
But things wouldn’t end easily for the Beach, who found themselves trailing in the final minute after Jordan Webster’s three-point play. Her free throw gave the Highlanders a 52-51 lead with just 38 seconds to play, and the Beach looked to their hot hand to make a play.
Woodley went off the bounce and put up a contested shot on the right side of the key. It was no good, but the referee’s whistle gave her two shots at the line with the chance to put the Beach on top. Woodley calmly knocked down both free throws to put the Beach on top, and a few more key stops put the finishing touches on the win.
The victory gives Long Beach State their second Big West win of the campaign, and their first at Walter Pyramid since Dec. 19, also a two-point win over San Francisco.
“The vibes are good,” said freshman Jada Crawshaw of how the locker room felt after the game. “We stuck together. We had some hard moments in the game but we all came together … I think it’s a carryover from practice, these past few practices we’ve been going 100 percent.”
The Beach will remain at home for their next contest, hosting Cal State Bakersfield next Thursday at 7 p.m.
