Aggie women fall behind early in non-conference basketball loss at Gonzaga
UCD rallies in the second half, but Gonzaga prevails, 83-72
SPOKANE ... UC Davis dug a deep early hole, then mounted a spirited second half rally that fell short in an 83-72 non-conference women’s basketball loss to Gonzaga Saturday evening before a pleased crowd of 4,686 at the McCarthey Athletic Center.
UCD drops to 7-3 with the loss, while Gonzaga is now 6-4.
A 3-pointer by Avery Sussex gave the Aggies their only lead of the night at 3-2 and the score was tied, 5-5, on a pair of Sussex free throws, but from there the Zags went on a 23-4 run to end the first quarter up 28-9.
Gonzaga hit 5 of 6 from long range in the opening quarter and shot 62 percent from the field in the first half.
The onslaught continued in the second quarter as the Bulldogs built their lead to as many as 30 points and took a 53-24 advantage into intermission.
With Sussex, Nya Epps and Ryann Bennett leading the way, UCD rallied, cutting the lead to 71-64 on a trey from Epps with 5:01 remaining, but Gonzaga gradually pulled away down the stretch.
Epps had 23 points, eight rebounds, three assists and a steal, while Sussex also had 23 points and Bennett added 18 points, six assists and a pair of steals.
UCD was a perfect 15 for 15 from the foul line.
The Aggies will take a week off for final exams before returning to action on Sunday, December 14 against Chico State at 2 p.m. in the University Credit Union Center.