BELMONT, Calif. – Defense was the name of the game for the Sea Lions as they held the Notre Dame de Namur Argonauts to just 38 points and came away with their sixth straight victory, 60-38. The win not only continued their win streak, but they also secured their position in the PacWest conference tournament.
 
It was a slow start for both teams as neither was able to get their offense going. Both teams shot 33 percent or less from the field in the first quarter and Point Loma held the 12-9 lead through the first ten minutes. Cara Liggins was held scoreless in the first quarter, but opened the second quarter with a three-pointer and went on to score nine total points in the frame.
 
After holding a 10-point lead at the half, the Sea Lions opened the second half on the attack and were able to quickly push their lead to 16 early in the third. Liggins continued her scoring tear putting up 11 more points in the quarter and the team held a 16 point lead going into the final quarter. The Sea Lions continued their stingy defense in the fourth quarter and got a solid effort from the bench adding seven points in the quarter.
 
LIggins tallied her 20 points as well as securing seven rebounds, four assists and two steals. Grace Brady totaled 14 points on the night, just shy of her season-high, and grabbed six rebounds and two blocks. Yuendie Guridi put up eight points and four steals, while Haylee Saurette added seven points and six boards off of the bench.
 
Team Records
PLNU (12-10, 11-5 PacWest), NDNU (4-16, 3-13 PacWest)
 
PacWest Implications
With their sixth win in a row, the Sea Lions move to 11-5 in conference play and clinched a spot in the PacWest tournament. They are currently tied for fourth with Fresno Pacific, but will have a huge game against them in Golden Gym on Feb. 23.
 
Faulkner's Thoughts
On the defensive effort: "That was a great defensive effort for 40 minutes. The first half, holding them to 15 points, is really, really good. We did the things we know we are capable of doing, we didn't try to play outside of ourselves, we stuck to the game plan and did our job."

On Liggins' solid and efficient play: "Cara has been playing great, really how she is capable of playing. With any of our players we ask them to not do anything outside of themselves, we want them to let the game come to them. She really is allowing the game to come to her and honestly she missed a few easy ones that I'm sure she wishes she had back. Overall, she has been very consistent and we need her to be. It has been nice to have that."

On holding them to 12 points in the paint: "We kept them in front of us. The game plan was that they would want to drive and we did a really good job of keeping them in front of us and sticking to our principles. Even though Grace didn't have a ton of blocked shots, or as many as she normally does, she did her job and she altered shots when people were able to get past our first line of defense. She is there and they know she is a presence. Overall, we did a good job of closing out and making sure we kept people in front of us."

On clinching a berth to the conference tournament: "It is nice to know that we're in, but we want more than that. I think that playing really good basketball going through the end of February and into March is really important. We have talked about from the beginning of the season that this is the time we want to be peaking and I get the sense that we are. Now we know we are in the tournament, it's a chance to keep your season going. We want to end our season on a big high note and continue that momentum into playing at Dominican. The team is excited about it, as they should be, but we aren't done yet."

On finishing strong on the road: "My message to the team has been focusing on us. Focusing on the team we want to be and the identity that we want to have. Do we want to squeak out wins on the road or do we want to be the team who comes in and says we are a really good basketball team and people should start taking notice. We want them to know us as a team that can make a really deep run into the conference tournament and possibly get in to the NCAA tournament. That's really what we are focusing on. Holy Names, just like anyone in the conference, they are capable of beating anybody, so it is really about our effort, our intensity, and playing our game. If we do that, we will be fine and hopefully we can close out our conference road schedule on a high note and finish our last five games at home which will be nice."

News and Notes
> Liggins scored her 20 points in just two quarters. 
> Brady went 7-of-10 from the floor for one of her most efficient nights on the season. 
> The Sea Lions are just one win away from totaling their number of conference wins from last season. 
> Point Loma is 15-2 all-time against NDNU and 10-0 since joining the PacWest. 
> Melanie Quijano notched three steals in 17 minutes for the Sea Lions.
> In their six-game winning streak, PLNU has held four opponents to 52 points or fewer.

Up Next
The Sea Lions finish their trip to the Bay Area on Saturday when they play at Holy Names at 4 p.m.