Nelson Leads USC Women Past UCLA, 86-63

USC may have been looking ahead to a pivotal women’s basketball game against Cal State Long Beach next week. UCLA may also have been looking ahead, to better days.

But the present was not much different than the past. As they had earlier in the season, the Trojans soundly defeated the Bruins, 86-63, in a Pacific 10 Conference game Thursday night in front of 400 in the Sports Arena.

Trojan center Cherie Nelson dominated, scoring a career-high 38 points and 12 rebounds. Bruin forward Dora Dome, who had been averaging 19 points a game, scored only 7 points.

USC (14-5 overall, 8-2) took an early lead, stretching it to as many as eight points, but the Bruins (13-9, 6-4) closed the deficit until Nelson sparked an eight-point USC run.

The Trojans led at the half, 40-32.

USC Coach Linda Sharp praised her guards for stopping Dome and creating opportunities for the Trojans. “Paula wants to go out and harass their guard,” Sharp said. “She tries to get steals, she looks for the turnover. She has to do that because she’s so small (5 feet 5 inches.) Defensively, she’s done what she has to do this season.”

In the second half, USC took control, using accurate shooting and superior rebounding to extend its lead to as many as 23 points.

Dome, who made only 3 of 12 shots from the floor, fouled out with 7:37 left to play.

What was wrong with Dome?

“She just had a bad game,” UCLA Coach Billie Moore said. “She’s human.”

No other Bruin stepped forward to pick up the slack. Sandra VanEmbricqs and Jamie Brown each had 12 points. “We were not shooting the ball well,” Moore said of the Bruins, who made 32% from the floor. “When you are not shooting the ball well, it puts a lot of pressure on other areas.”

USC’s Karon Howell, who had 13 points, made 3 of 6 three-point shots and drew the Bruins’ defense outside.

But the Trojans did not rely only on Howell and Nelson. Senior guard Paula Pyers helped shut down Dome and revved up the Trojan running game with 12 points and 10 assists. Senior forward Holly Ford also had 12 points for USC.