Bennett hits for 26 as UC Davis women rally to down Long Beach State in Big West basketball battle
Aggies remain in title contention with impressive second-half comeback
LONG BEACH - Playing in her hometown, Ryann Bennett tied her career high with 26 points to lead the UC Davis women to a 77-66 Big West basketball win over Long Beach State Saturday afternoon before a crowd of 655 at the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid.
The win, UCD’s third straight, keeps alive Aggie hopes for a conference regular-season championship with a 12-3 Big West mark. UCD, 19-7 overall, has five games remaining, four at home.
Long Beach is now 2-12 in the Big West and 3-21 overall.
Despite struggling all season, Long Beach played like a championship contender for the first 20 minutes, taking a 17-15 lead at the quarter and a 35-31 advantage at halftime.
The Beach expanded its lead to 37-31 to open the third quarter, but then Bennett hit a 3-pointer to ignite a 15-0 Aggie burst as UCD took control the rest of the way.
Bennett had eight points during the run, and produced another dagger from long range to give UCD a 55-44 lead to close the third quarter. The Aggies were 9 of 12 from the field, including 5 of 6 from 3-point land in the third quarter.
Bennett was 6 of 9 from long range and 6 of 6 from the foul line for the game, while Megan Norris added 16 points and 14 rebounds for her 17th double-double of the season. Tegan Young was the only other Aggie in double figures with 13 points, including a crucial layup that gave the Aggies the lead for good early in the third quarter.
The Aggies return to action Thursday at 6 p.m. against Cal State Fullerton and Saturday at 2 p.m. against UC Riverside.
After a date at Hawaii on Feb. 26, UCD finishes the regular season at home against Long Beach on March 5 and UC Irvine on March 7.