Box Score LOS ANGELES, Calif.- The Belmont University women's basketball team (2-4) fell in a tight one Friday afternoon, dropping a 62-53 decision to Fresno State (2-2) at Gersten Pavilion in its first of two games at the 19th annual Loyola Marymount Thanksgiving Classic.
Lauren Thompson (Franklin, Tenn.) led Belmont with 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the field and at one point the senior scored 12-straight points for the Bruins. Junior center Sally McCabe(Mt. Juliet, Tenn.) also added 11 points while blocking five shots.
The Bruins were dominant on the glass, outrebounding their opponent 45-30, including 21 offensive boards. Belmont assisted on 19 of its 22 field goals and its bench outscored Fresno's 21-5.
Belmont finished 22-67 (32.8%) from the field while Fresno State shot 22-51 (43.1%).
A Thompson lay in brought the Bruins within four points at 54-50 with 3:12 to play, but Belmont would score just three points from this point forward as Fresno State ended the game on an 8-3 run.
Fresno State led 16-9 after the first quarter, connecting on four three pointers and shooting 66.7% from beyond the arc. The Bruins struggled to find their footing in the early going, shooting just 4-of-15 in the frame. Fresno jumped out to a quick 6-0 edge after hitting back-to-back three-pointers to open the game and it stretched its lead to 9-2 with 4:13 to play in the quarter. Belmont would settle in though as it played even with Fresno State at 7-7 over the final four minutes of the frame.
At the half the Bruins faced a 30-24 deficit as McCabe and Thompson each registered six points to pace the offense in the first 20 minutes of play. After getting off to a slow start in the first, the Bruins fought their way back in the second, outscoring Fresno State 15-14. Despite trailing by as many as nine, Belmont came within four with 1:45 to play in the half after Thompson converted on a pair of trys from the charity stripe. The Bulldogs then rattled off four-straight points before Thompson knocked in a short jumper with just seconds remaining in the half to trim the lead back to six.
Belmont shot 10-of-32 from the field in the first half and outrebounded Fresno State, 21-15. Belmont managed to weather a slow start offensively with great hustle on both ends of the floor.
After some halftime adjustments, the Bruins opened the third quarter with some strong offensive attacks, scoring the first six points of the half to draw even with Fresno State at 30-30. Thompson who scored the last four points of the first half, scored the first eight Belmont points and the first six points overall in the second half. After Thompson's personal 6-0 scoring run helped Belmont equalize, the Bulldogs came right came back with a 7-0 run over their own. All told, Fresno State would outscore Belmont 17-10 after the score was knotted at 30-30, and carried a 47-40 lead heading into the fourth. Thompson finished the quarter with eight points and Kylee Smith (Alpharetta, Ga.) also played effectively, scoring five points, snagging four rebounds and dishing out three assists.
Fresno State outscored Belmont, 15-13 in the fourth and led by as many as 12 in the stanza. Belmont trailed 54-42 with 6:24 to go but would employ an 8-0 run to draw within four points of Fresno State with 3:12 remaining in regulation. After Thompson's layup, which cut the lead to 54-50, the Bruins would not score again until just 20 seconds were left on the clock when Darby Maggard (Larwill, Ind.) drilled her second triple of the quarter to make it 62-53 Fresno State.
Maddie Wright (Chattanooga, Tenn.) earned her first collegiate start as McCabe appeared off the bench for the first time since Feb. 28, 2015 against Tennessee State.
Five Bruins grabbed at least five rebounds led by Thompson and Smith who each registered seven while Frankie Joubran (Goodrich, Mich.) brought in six and provided strong minutes off the bench.
McCabe and Smith each recorded a team-high four assists.
Fresno State was led by Bego Faz Davaloz who scored 24 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and blocked seven shots. Faz Davaloz entered the weekend leading the nation in blocks.
The Bruins return to action Saturday, Nov. 26 when they take on the host LMU Lions at Gersten Pavilion to close around their west coast road swing.
