Box Score SANTA CLARA, Calif. – Making the short trip to the Bay Area, the Pacific women's basketball (6-7, 4-6) got back in the win column with a dominating victory over Santa Clara (10-7, 6-5) on Thursday night, taking down the Broncos, 86-62, at the Leavey Center.
 
Hitting their stride right out of the gates,  Pacific took the lead at 8:49 in the opening quarter and never looked back, cruising to their largest victory of the season with a 24-point win over Santa Clara.
 
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• Despite the Broncos netting the first official points of the contest, the Tigers quickly responded to take the lead on a layup from Brooklyn McDavid just 1:11 into regulation, giving Pacific the early 4-2 advantage.
• Following McDavid's field goal, UOP continued their momentum through the opening period, which included a three from junior Kaylin Randhawa at 4:47 to extend the Tiger lead to double digits, 17-7. At the end of one, Pacific remained in control over Santa Clara, 24-9.
• Catching fire as a team, the Tigers continued to pour it on in the second quarter as back-to-back triples from freshman Liz Smith pushed Pacific's advantage to nineteen at the 8:03 mark, 31-12.
• With the gap reaching as many as 31 points midway through the second following a layup by Rosie Schweizer, UOP would head into the locker room with a sizeable lead over the Broncos, 49-19. Notably, Santa Clara's 19 points was the lowest the Tigers have held an opponent to in the first half this season.
• Keeping their pace, Pacific pushed their lead to 32 on a fast break layup from senior Lianna Tillman at the 5:06 mark in the third.
• At the end of three, the Tigers saw their advantage climb to 38 points following a free throw from sophomore Cassidy Johnson with 26 seconds left in the quarter. Heading into the fourth, UOP remained out in front, 75-37.
• Although the Broncos would put up one last battle with a strong fourth quarter showing, Pacific would ultimately secure the route of Santa Clara in the final quarter as the Tigers never let SCU come within 23 points down the stretch. Notching their second road victory in conference play, UOP defeat the Broncos by a final score of 86-62.  

NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

• Displaying her dominance, Valerie Higgins was named the Hardworking Player of the Game after notching her third double-double in her last four games with 20 points, 10 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal. Overall, the redshirt senior finished 8-of-9 from the floor and has now grabbed at least 10 rebounds in her last four contests as well. Additionally, tonight's double-double also marked the 30^th time that the versatile guard has achieved this feat as a Tiger.
• Contributing for a total team effort, Randhawa also scored in double figures for the third consecutive game with 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting while Tillman tied a career-high in assists with 10 dimes.
• As a team, Pacific shot a scorching 59.6 percent overall and 54.2 percent from behind-the-arc. Impressively, the Tigers improved to 6-0 when holding their opponent to 40 percent shooting or worse in their win over the Broncos.  

UP NEXT:
Pacific will continue their three-game road trip with a matchup at San Francisco this Saturday, Feb. 6. Tip-off is set for 2:00 pm PST from The War Memorial at the Sobrato Center. Streaming and stat links will be available via pacifictigers.com.
 
FOLLOW US:
For more updates and more information on the 2020-21 Pacific women's basketball team, be sure to follow @Pacific_Hoops on Twitter, @pacificwbb on Instagram and @PacificWomensBasketball on Facebook.