ARCATA, Calif. – The Humboldt State women's basketball team used a big second-half effort to defeat Cal State San Marcos 88-70 and extend its winning streak to five games Thursday night in Lumberjack Arena.

After losing their Nov. 29 meeting with the Cougars, the Green and Gold circled Thursday's game on the schedule as one with added meaning.

"We just didn't feel like we gave them our best effort when we played at their place, and that has sat in our girls' stomachs this entire time," said HSU Head Coach Michelle Bento-Jackson. "Win or lose tonight, I knew our team was ready to come out and play with a lot of energy and great effort. We started the game that way and didn't take our foot off the pedal throughout the game."

The two teams, which entered the night battling for the third spot in the conference standings, played evenly through the opening 20 minutes. The first half featured 11 lead changes and seven ties, but a second-quarter scoring burst from the home team gave HSU a 38-35 edge at intermission. Alexia Thrower led the Jacks with 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting in the first half.

HSU opened the second half on a 7-0 run that was capped by a driving layup from Isamar Conde which gave the home squad a double-digit, 45-35, advantage. A deep 3-pointer from Madeline Hatch two minutes later continued the Green and Gold landslide that buried the Cougars. HSU outscored San Marcos 23-14 in the third frame and took a 61-49 lead into the final 10 minutes of play.

The Jacks, powered by a season-high 27 points from Thrower, continued to roll in the fourth. HSU saw its lead grow to a game-best 21 points, 88-67, with 1:14 remaining as the home team cruised to its fifth consecutive win.

"We went in with a payback and revenge mindset," said Thrower. "We are at home, so we want to give our crowd and our fans a good game. We just wanted to play hard and play as a team tonight."

Thrower finished the game with 27 points and 10 boards, and she recorded her team-leading 10th double-double of the season. The junior continues to step up her game as the season progresses, and she chalks the improvement up to defense.

"I am more focused on defense and learning how to play team defense," said Thrower. "I had always focused on offense, so that's been my main focus throughout the year."

Conde (19), Jovanah Arrington (15) and Gabrielle Carbajal (10) joined Thrower with double-digit points for HSU. The Jacks ended the game shooting 52.5 percent from the field and 56.3 percent from outside the arc. Tyra Turner also turned in an outstanding performance with eight points, seven rebounds and eight assists. The junior did not commit a turnover against the Cougars.

HSU improved to 11-5 overall and 9-4 in conference play with the win. The Green and Gold face undefeated and nationally-ranked UC San Diego Saturday night in Lumberjack Arena.

"It is certainly a huge game," said Bento-Jackson. "As cliche as it sounds, we try and put the focus on how we are improving and moving forward. We are in the second half of the season and every night you have to show up. We weren't happy with our start in San Diego. We dug ourselves a huge hole and had to play catch up the entire game. To play a team of that caliber and talent from behind is a very tough thing to do. It is very im