ANCHORAGE – Alysa Horn and Hanna Johansson scored
10 points apiece Tuesday to lead the Alaska Anchorage women's basketball team
into its fifth straight Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout title game with a
48-35 first-round victory over San Jose State at Sullivan Arena.
The Seawolves (5-1), ranked No. 11 in the latest NCAA Division II poll, scored
their ninth straight victory over a Division I team in their flagship
tournament. UAA will get a chance to defend its four consecutive titles
Wednesday at 5 p.m. AST when it faces Kent State (3-0).
The Spartans (0-5) were led by 12 points and three assists from point guard AJ
Newton, but the Western Athletic Conference squad was forced into 20 turnovers,
while UAA committed just 10.
Five of SJSU's turnovers came on steals by Seawolf junior forward Tijera
Mathews, who also finished with eight points (2-3 3FG) to earn Carrs/Safeway
Player of the Game honors.
UAA jumped to an 8-0 lead and never trailed, although the Spartans kept things
close throughout. Clinging to a 33-27 advantage with just over eight minutes
remaining, Mathews made a steal at midcourt that led directly to a three-point
play by Johansson. Then, just 20 seconds later, the transfer from Antelope
Valley (Calif.) College used her long arms to poke the ball away from SJSU's Liz
Johnson, leading to a fastbreak layup and another three-point play by Horn.
In all, Mathews made steals on four straight possessions within 64 seconds as
UAA's lead grew back to 41-27.
Senior forward Nikki Aden finished with six points and four rebounds, Horn
added a team-high six rebounds, and Johansson shot 4-for-7 to go with five
rebounds and two assists.
The game broke the Shootout record for fewest combined points, erasing a 50-41
San Diego State victory over Houston in 1981 from the record books. It was also
the fewest points ever allowed against a Div. I team by the Seawolves,
bettering their 40-38 victory over San Diego from 1984.
UAA has now won 34 games all-time against Div. I competition (32 in the
Shootout). The Seawolves have also now posted double-digit victory margins in
their first-round Shootout games the last three years (72-44 over Cal State
Northridge, 2008; 89-47 over Coastal Carolina, 2009).
