State #11 Irvine Valley Ends #5 Women's Hoops 7-Game Win Streak

In the past seven years, Irvine Valley College has been a thorn in the side of the Pasadena City College women's basketball team. After PCC held a 9-0 edge in the head-to-head matchups going into 2013, the Lasers are 4-2 now against Lancers teams in recent meetings after a 66-52 win over PCC at Hutto-Patterson Gymnasium Wednesday evening.

The state #11-ranked Lasers (8-1) ended the #5-rated Lancers 7-game, season-long win streak but only after the teams traded the lead 17 times and were tied on five occasions. IVC led 13-11 after one quarter, but PCC tied it at 26-26 by halftime. The Lasers led 38-37 going into the fourth quarter.

In the final period, IVC fought through PCC's press defense and it resulted in a run of driving layups on the other end. The Lasers went on a 10-2 run, all on layups capped by Alara Ersu's bucket to make it 51-42. After Mya Rivera netted a 3-pointer for PCC, the Lasers scored the next seven points and essentially put the game out of reach, ahead by 13 (58-45) with less then four minutes remaining. 

While PCC barely made it to the free throw line all game (just 1-for-4 attempts), Irvine Valley took full advantage of its FT opportunities, making 23 of 27 (85.2 percent), including 16-for-19 in the second half. Kaitlyn Luu led IVC with a game-high 19 points (11-for-12 at the stripe) plus 10 rebounds. 

For Pasadena, letterman forward Dariel Johnson totaled 10 points, 15 rebounds, six assists and five blocked shots. Sophomore point guard Cosette Balmy scored a team-high 13 points with seven assists and three steals while second-year shooting guard Merina Latu added 10 points. Off the bench, frosh guard Lizette Espinoza drained three 3-pointers for her 9 points. While Irvine Valley pushed the tempo to work the ball inside often, the Lancers were more content shooting from the outside. However, PCC only made nine of 40 shots from beyond 3-point range. 

Coach Joe Peron's Lancers return to action on Dec. 13-15 at the Los Angeles Harbor College Round Robin Tournament. PCC will open with a 12 noon game on Friday the 13th against Southwestern.