TURLOCK — Sophomore point guard Taylor Pilot set a career high in points for the fifth time this season and the Stanislaus State women's basketball team's defense made a stand in the second half, but visiting San Francisco State's strong offensive first half carried them to a 77-66 California Collegiate Athletic Association win at Ed & Bertha Fitzpatrick Arena.
 
Pilot led the Warriors (11-7, 6-6 CCAA) with 21 points, her first career 20-point game. She was perfect from the free-throw line (6 for 6) and made three 3-pointers. Pilot nearly had a triple-double, collecting eight rebounds and dishing six assists. Thursday was the third time in her career she set a new career high in points against San Francisco State. She scored 10 points as a freshman against the Gators (8-12, 6-10 CCAA) on Feb. 15, 2020, then scored 18 at SFSU this season on Jan. 22.
 
Da'Myiah Lewis also flirted with a triple-double, scoring 17 points, grabbing seven rebounds and swiping five steals. Liliana Marques scored 11 points while hitting three treys. The Warriors outrebounded San Francisco State, 44-39, but the Gators scored 30 points off Stan State's 22 turnovers in the game. The Warriors forced 23 turnovers from SFSU, but only turned them into 13 points.
 
San Francisco State's offense was on fire in the first half. The Gators could hardly miss, shooting 65.4% from the floor and even better from 3-point range, hitting 8 of 12 long balls (66.7%). The Warriors were within two in the first quarter at 11-9, but SFSU took off with a 15-2 run that started with back-to-back 3s from Mya Blake and ended with a third trey in the second to make it 26-11. San Francisco State's lead grew to as much as 22 in the second before going into halftime with a 44-24 lead.
 
The Warriors' defense picked up in the second half, this time limiting the Gators to 32.1% shooting and only three total 3-pointers (18.8%). The Warriors' offense also got better. They increased their field goal percentage by nearly 10 percent and more than doubled their total 3s made from the first half (from three to seven). The Warriors were also dominant at the free-throw line, going over not only 80% for the first time this season, but shooting 90.9% (10 for 11), their best single-game percentage of the year.
 
Stanislaus State whittled its deficit all the way down to 10 points on two occasions in the fourth quarter, but each time it couldn't get it into single digits. Alexsandra Alvarado caused problems for the Warriors all night long. She was everywhere on the court and all over the box score. She scored 22 points, had seven rebounds and dished six assists, and grabbed five steals – all off the bench. She also drew 11 fouls from the Warriors, and made 8 of 10 free-throw attempts.
 
Stanislaus State next hosts Cal State Monterey Bay at 5:30 p.m. Saturday as part of a doubleheader with the men. Fans can purchase tickets and find all live coverage links on WarriorAthletics.com.