The Tigers will face the La Verne Leopards at home Saturday in the championship game of the 2009 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference post-season tournament after cruising to a 79-51 victory over the Whittier College Poets at Rush Gymnasium Thursday.
Junior Gillian Nugent exploded with 19 points and hit four consecutive three-pointers after Whittier got within 16 points, building a significant lead in the second half as ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½ earned its 21st victory of the season.
Whittier (16-10, 8-6 SCIAC) struck first, but ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½ answered with a 16-0 run to take a commanding lead and a 36-19 advantage into the locker room at the half. It was more of the same for ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½ in the second, as the Tigers led by at least 16 for the entire 20 minutes, pushing the lead to as much as 31 points.
Overall the Tigers shot 46.7% from the field and held the Poets to 39%. Three other Tigers joined Nugent in reaching double figures including Brianne Brown ’09 (15) and sophomores Stephanie Babij (14) and Dior Williams (10). Madeline Rose '11 had a game-high seven assists and Williams added to her conference lead in steals with four on the night.
Whittier’s Kourtney Zilbert fouled out with 2:42 to play in regulation after posting a team high in both points (17) and rebounds (12), recording the only double-double of the game. Ashley Vierra finished with 12 points for the Poets.
ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½ split with La Verne this season, dropping a heart-breaking 65-60 loss at the hands of the Leopards on Jan. 29. The Tigers avenged the loss at home last Saturday in a 57-54 season finale to claim their second SCIAC title in as many years. La Verne (19-6, 10-4) qualified for the final Thursday by hanging on to upset the University of Redlands (19-7, 11-3) 50-48 at Currier Gymnasium, the Bulldogs’ home court.
The Tigers and Leopards will meet in the tournament championship game in Rush Gymnasium at 5 p.m. Saturday. The winner earns the conference’s automatic bid into the NCAA Division III playoffs.
Tickets for the event are $5 for adults, $2 for children 12 and under and senior citizens 55 and older and free to ÐÇ¿ÕÎÞÏÞ´«Ã½ and La Verne faculty, staff and students with current ID cards. The ticket booth will open one hour prior to tip-off.
