ARCATA, Calif. – Hoping to deepen its improbable postseason run, the Humboldt State women's basketball team departed Wednesday for Southern California, as the Lumberjacks face top seed Azusa Pacific in the NCAA Division II West Region Tournament Friday with a 7:30 p.m. tip time. The Jacks are seeded No. 8 in the region.
HSU is 0-2 all-time versus the Cougars, having last faced off against them in the 1986-87 season. Azusa brings in a gaudy 27-4 record, but was upset in its first game of the Pacific West conference tournament by Point Loma, 76-68.
The Jacks stand at 18-12 on the season.
Drawing on the question "Why not us?", HSU won the California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament last week and earned a NCAA Tournament bid. After beating Cal State East Bay 54-53 in a home game last Tuesday, the Jacks defeated Cal Poly Pomona 69-53 on the Broncos' home court Friday. They capped the weekend Saturday with a stirring come-from-behind, last-second victory against conference regular-season champ UC San Diego, 76-75.
The Jacks' victory against the Tritons in the conference tourney finale avenged two prior losses this year and provided an emphatic answer to those who picked HSU to finish 10th in the conference preseason.
"Obviously, it was our best week of the season, and there's no better time than the end of the year to really gain some momentum and most importantly, to play our best basketball," said Lumberjack Head Coach Michelle Bento-Jackson. "What we're striving for the whole year is to play our best in March, and we've had three games where we've executed very well on both ends, the effort's been consistent, and we're getting much more balance in our scoring attack. When we do those things, we can play with anybody."
Jovanah Arrington, who sank the game-winning three versus UC San Diego with one second remaining, was named to the All-Tournament Team for her efforts last week. Joining her was Tournament MVP Tyra Turner, who assisted on the final bucket, and Isamar Conde, who notched 26 points in the semifinal against Pomona.
Bento-Jackson was extremely pleased with the mental toughness her team showed in its CCAA tournament run, and alluded to how it was the product of a long season of work.
"I was confident that going back to their conditioning in the fall, they would be prepared for the moment," said Bento-Jackson. "And sure enough, it was in their hands, and they did execute. I was just so excited to see them celebrate at the end of that game and cut down the nets. To me, that's what it's all about."
While she acknowledged that Azusa Pacific is a very talented team that's had a tremendous season, Bento-Jackson also mentioned that the CCAA has done an excellent job preparing the Jacks for West Region tournament play.
"We've been in so many different scenarios that I think we're prepared for this moment," said Bento-Jackson. "Obviously, we'll prepare for Azusa, but I can't think of a situation that we have not faced this year that's going to be a surprise to our girls, and that should bring our group confidence."
Six Rivers Brewery in McKinleyville will be live-streaming the broadcast of the Azusa Pacific game with the tip at 7:30 p.m. Friday night, and happy hour will be extended for those in Jacks gear.
