LONG BEACH, Calif. – Powered by another dominant offensive performance from Candy Edokpaigbe, the University of San Francisco women's basketball team (3-2) earned a 68-55 road victory over Long Beach State (0-5) Thursday evening at The Gold Mine.
 
San Francisco had two players score in double figures, led by Edokpaigbe, who had 22 points 3and seven rebounds. Mara Neira added 10 points and three steals while Noelia Mouriño added seven points and 15 rebounds.
 
On the glass, the Dons secured 39 rebounds compared to Long Beach State's 32, led by Mouriño's 15 boards. The green and gold also put in work on the offensive end, turning 12 offensive rebounds into 17 second-chance points.
 
The Dons won the turnover battle, forcing 19, while only committing 16. The program turned those takeaways into 19 points on the offensive end of the floor. Paula Tirado and Neira recorded three steals apiece to lead the defensive effort.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• After falling behind 4-3, San Francisco went on a 5-0 run with 6:44 left in the first quarter to take an 8-4 lead. Capitalizing on five turnovers from Long Beach State, the green and gold held a narrow 17-16 advantage at the end of the first quarter.
• Building on its first-quarter lead, San Francisco used a 7-2 scoring run to gain a 25-18 edge. Edokpaigbe led the Dons throughout the run, scoring three points while Tirado and Nataša Taušová added layups.
• Leading by seven, 29-22, the Dons scored seven straight points, highlighted by a Neira three-pointer, pushed the margin to double digits, 36-22, at the 2:16 mark of the second quarter. Closing the first half well, San Francisco held an 11-point lead, 41-30, at the halftime break.
• San Francisco continued to preserve its halftime lead before going on a 5-0 scoring run, punctuated by a basket from AinaCargol, to expand the lead to 54-47 with 2:02 left in the third quarter. Before the conclusion of the third quarter, Long Beach State cut into its deficit, but still trailed entering the fourth quarter, 54-49.
• San Francisco widened its advantage, expanding it to 68-53 with 1:10 to go in the contest. The Dons held the Beach to one field goal in the final minute of the game to secure the 68-55 victory. 

• Edokpaigbe recorded her third 20+ point performance this season, finishing with a game-high 22 points on 64.3 percent (nine-for-14) shooting.
• Mouriño recorded a career-high 15 rebounds, the first player to secure 15 or more rebounds in a game for the program since Debora dos Santos grabbed 15 against Pepperdine on January 11, 2024.
• Reaching double-digit scoring in back-to-back games, Neira totaled 10 points and knocked down a team-high two three-pointers.
• As a team, San Francisco held Long Beach State to 38.2 percent (21-for-55) shooting. The Dons also held an edge over the Beach in rebounding (39-32), points in the paint (40-18), bench points (19-2), and second-chance points (17-6).

UP NEXT:
San Francisco returns to the Hilltop for two straight home games, beginning with Lehigh at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 25, at War Memorial at the Sobrato Center.

FOLLOW US:
For updates and more information on the San Francisco women's basketball program, follow the Dons @USFDonsWBB on Twitter, @USFDonsWBB on Instagram and @USFDonsWBB on Facebook.
 
MERCHANDISE:
Want to dress like the Dons? Get your official San Francisco Dons gear from the University of San Francisco bookstore today! Click here to purchase.
 
SPONSOR US:
The University of San Francisco Athletics Department would like to acknowledge and thank our sponsor – San Francisco Toyota –  for their continued support of USF Athletics. Interested in sponsoring the Dons? Please contact Frank Allocco, the Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director of External Relations, at fallocco@usfca.edu or at (415) 422-4561.

*This article was created using technology provided by Data Skrive*