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LOS ANGELES – The Dons' defense set the tone at the tip, and by the final buzzer it was defense that came up clutch in the end. Down to the last ticks on the clock, it took the full 45 minutes and five periods for the San Francisco women's basketball team to outlast Loyola Marymount 75-73 on Thursday night at Gersten Pavilion.

USF was paced by four double-digit scoring efforts, led by Zhane Dikes' 21 points, five rebounds and four steals. Nine of her 21 came in the overtime period, where the senior from Las Vegas was 2-for-2 from the floor and 4-of-6 from the line to help seal the victorious effort.

Rachel Howard contributed 12 points, Kalyn Simon added 10, and Taylor Proctor finished with 11 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in the game. After holding on for the win, the Dons improve to 11-7 (2-5 WCC) on the year, while the Lions fall to 7-10, and an even 3-3 in league play.

"Any road win in conference is great," said head coach Jennifer Azzi. "Our conference is so strong, and I think you can see that by watching any team in our league. LMU is a very good team and I think we did some good things down the stretch. For our team to be in their third overtime situation of the season and pull it out just showed the growth and maturity of our team. I think they continue to commit to one another and getting better."

The USF defense set the tone at the tip, holding Loyola Marymount to one first quarter field goal as the Dons rolled to the 18-3 lead after the first 10 minutes of action. The three point quarter for the Lions rates as the lowest point total in a period for the team thus far this season, and just the fifth single-digit quarter on the year.

For the USF defense, holding the Lions to three points in the first stands as the best lockdown quarter of the season against an NCAA Division I opponent and the 11th period of the year in which an opponent could not eclipse the 10-point mark.

The second quarter started in identical fashion as the first, with a turnover for Loyola Marymount's Deanna Johnson on their first offensive possession of the frame. The dons still maintained the 15-point spread after Dikes picked Leslie Lopez-Wood's pocket and went coast-to-coast for the fast break layup to put the score at 20-5 with 8:21 to play in the half.

Then, the Lions began to whittle away at the lead, however, and the difference dwindled to 11 after freshman Cheyanne Wallace was successful in her trip to the line to make it 29-18 with 3:55 on the clock. The Dons went into the halftime break with the 38-26 advantage after Raushan Gultekin dished down low to Claudia Proctor for the layup with 12 seconds to go.

The Lions came out strong after the intermission, cutting the USF lead to single digits after Sophie Taylor hit a pair from the free throw line with 3:46 to play in the third. By the end of the quarter the gap was just two, after Loyola Marymount strung together a 15-4 run over the final five minutes of the quarter. During the span, the Dons were 1-for-8 from the floor and committed three turnovers to make it a one possession game heading into the final period of regulation.

"We talked in the locker room at halftime that their best quarter of the game is always the third quarter," said Dikes. "They came out extremely strong like we expected and they were definitely dominating. But I'm proud that we stayed level-headed and didn't let that affect us. A lot of times when a team comes out strong in the third quarter and gets that momentum the other team seems to fold, and I'm glad we just stayed with it."

The stay with it attitude was evident after Simon scooped up the steal which led to a jumper for Dikes as USF surged to the 57-50 advantage with 7:02 remaining in regulation. However, the Lions roared back with 10 unanswered to earn the three-point lead after Bree Alford's layup made it 60-57 in favor of the home team with just 2:36 to go.

Seconds later, Howard swished a three to knot it at 60 apiece, where the score stayed until the waning moments. Proctor's layup off the pass from Howard with 3.2 seconds gave the Dons the slim lead, but Loyola Marymount's Taylor forced the overtime period after a successful trip to the line with 1.3 seconds remaining.

Curiously, the overtime period began just like the four that preceded it for the Lions – with a first-possession turnover for the home team. The Dons got on the high side after Proctor's steal and pass to a streaking Dikes led to the layup.

With much of the bonus minutes played at the free throw line, USF stretched its advantage by going 8-for-12 from the line in the final five minutes, constituting more than half of the Dons' attempts from the line. USF led by five after Dikes' couplet made it 73-68 with 13.4 seconds remaining, and despite an empty trip to the stripe with two seconds on the clock the Dons were able to deny a final shot attempt for Loyola Marymount to hold for the 75-73 victory.

The Dons and Lions shot nearly identical in the game, but the difference for the Dons came in points off turnovers. USF earned 24 points off of 27 Loyola Marymount turnovers, compared to the Lions' 12 points off 21 Dons' errors.

"This weekend is huge. If we can come away with another win on Saturday that can really help us turn the corner," noted Dikes. "We may not have started conference the way we wanted to, but we do have a lot of basketball ahead of us. If we just stay locked in and come out on Saturday and play tough and together I think we can walk away with another win."

Next, USF takes on Pepperdine at Firestone Fieldhouse as the Dons seeks its third-straight season with a Southland sweep. Saturday's tipoff between the Dons and the Waves is scheduled for 1 p.m.