ORANGE, Calif. -- The Cal Poly Pomona women's basketball team had five players score in double-figures, including a game-high 18 points from Kasey Smit in a 73-58 upset of No. 12 West Texas A&M to open up the 2019-20 season Friday at the CCA DII Tipoff Classic at Santiago Canyon College in Orange.
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Smit scored her 18 points on 7 of 12 shooting, including 3 of 6 from the three-point arc. After a year hiatus from the court, Jackie Ricketson returned to drop in 17 points to go along with six rebounds and five assists. Monica Todd had the Broncos' lone double-double of the contest with 13 points and 10 rebounds, Dominique Dotson scored 11 points and, off the bench, Jayda Villareal chipped in with 10 points.
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As a team, CPP shot 42.2 percent from the fllor on 27 of 64 shooting, including 10 of 22 (45.5 percent) from long range. ;Defensively, the Broncos held the Lady Buffs to just 34.5 percent shooting (19 of 55) while forcing 24 turnovers.
The game was extremely close the entire first half, as neither team led by more than four points at any time in the first 20 minutes of action. It was the Broncos to have a four-point halftime lead, one that CPP would never relinquish the rest of the way, despite the fact that WTAMU got within two points at 44-42 with 1:59 to play in the third quarter. The Lady Buffs also got within four points at 62-58 with 1:25 to go in regulation, but the Broncos ended the game on a 11-0 run to win by 15.
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For West Texas A&M, which went 29-4 a season ago, losing in the second round of the NCAA tournament, Braylyn Dollar scored 18 points and had 10 rebounds in the loss.
Cal Poly Pomona will play the second of three games this weekend at the CCA DII Tipoff Classic on Saturday, going up against Montana State Billings at 1:00 pm.
