Irvine Valley's women's basketball team started its season with a come-from-behind 79-65 win at West LA on Saturday night.
Irvine Valley trailed, 42-36, at the half, but out-scored West LA by 20 points in the second half (43-23) for the victory.
"I was most proud of the way our team was able to handle the adjustments we made as the game went along," IVC coach Julie Hanks said. "We made some changes at halftime, especially on the defensive end that worked."
After shooting 48.5 percent (16 of 33) in the first half from the field and making eight three pointers, IVC held West LA to just 32.1 shooting (9 of 28) in the second half and one three-pointer.
On the other end, Irvine Valley shot 48.6 percent (18 of 37) in the second half to come back for the victory.
IVC had four players score in double figures in the contest.
Sophomore center Breanna Turner led the way with 20 points and six rebounds. Freshman guard Tara Casey added 19 points, seven rebounds and two steals off the bench, freshman point guard Erika Mercado finished with 13 points, five rebounds and two steals and sophomore forward Conerie Brennan had 12 points and six rebounds.
"Erika had a great game," Hanks said. "She ran the team, didn't turn the ball over and hit a key shot. She really stood out. Brea had a good game. She kept herself around the basket and was a force inside. And I thought Tara had a nice game. She hit some big shots and really provided a spark for us."
Freshman guard Jordan Coleman also chipped in seven points and five steals for IVC.
"We didn't play our best, but were able to come out with the win," Hanks said. "We can still improve a lot defensively. But it was a good game to see what we needed to work on."
Irvine Valley plays again on Thursday, taking part in the Lady Gaucho Classic at Saddleback. IVC plays San Diego Mesa in the first round at 3 p.m.
