Women of Troy prepares to host Arizona schools


By
 in ,

The USC women’s basketball team is in the home stretch of its regular season run, with only two home games left. After a tough loss to the Stanford Cardinal (20-7, 12-3 Pac-12), the Women of Troy overcame the California Golden Bears (20-7, 11-4 Pac-12) by a score of 65-54.

The game belonged to seniors Kaneisha Horn and Alexyz Vaioletama, who scored 17 points apiece. Head coach Cynthia Cooper-Dyke called the game “the tale of two halves.” Vaioletama experienced foul trouble early against the Bears, while Horn had reliable offense in the first. In the second half, Vaioletama would have a surge in offensive success.

“No matter what Cal threw at us, we didn’t get down on ourselves,” said Cooper-Dyke. “We executed both in the half court set offensively and in the half court defensively.”

Sophomore guard Alexis Lloyd performed well offensively, scoring 14 points against the Bears.

“We just went out there with nothing to lose,” said Lloyd. “We helped one another, we picked one another up. We were just having fun out there.”

Now the Women of Troy are back at home, preparing to face the Arizona Wildcats (9-16, 2-12        Pac-12) on Friday at 7 p.m. On Sunday, USC will crusade against the Arizona State Sun Devils (22-4, 11-3 Pac-12).

The Sunday game against Arizona State will be Senior Day, and USC will honor Horn and Vaioletama for their hard work fighting for Troy.

“I’m just happy that my whole family will be here to support not only just myself, but the whole team,” Vaioletama said.

Horn has been consistent on both ends of the court, averaging 10.3 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. Vaioletama has made great strides this season, shooting 49 percent from the field. She also leads the team in blocks, with 15 so far this season. Cooper-Dyke said the duo’s talents would be missed, but she knows they will have prosperous futures.

“They are two very talented players. I fully expect them to go pro,” Cooper-Dyke said. “They’re very athletic. They can stretch the defense with their outside shot.”

The Sun Devils reside in the higher echelon of the Pac-12, sitting in third place. The previous weekend, Arizona State condemned the Oregon Ducks (12-13, 5-9          Pac-12) to defeat. However, the Oregon State Beavers (23-2, 13-1 Pac-12) overwhelmed the Sun Devils.

The Sun Devils are led by Katie Hempen, who scores 12 points per game and has a 37 percent shooting average from behind the arc. Sophie Brunner has led the team in either points, rebounds or both for the past six games. She has earned 11.9 points and 7.5 rebounds per game for the Sun Devils.

The Friday night game against Arizona is also a “pink” game in honor of the Play4Kay campaign. Former North Carolina State University women’s basketball coach Kay Yow created the fund to raise money for cancer treatment research. Yow lost her third fight with breast cancer in 2009.

Arizona’s Candice Warthen averages 12.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. LaBrittney Jones earns 9.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per game. The Wildcats were USC’s first victim in its road to the championship in the Pac-12 tournament last year.

“We play at a very high level, and we’re gonna bring that to Arizona,” said Cooper-Dyke. “Every team in the Pac-12 conference is very competitive.”