Cold shooting plagues Aggie women in 69-61 Big West basketball loss at UC Santa Barbara
UC Davis led early, but UCSB's long-range bombs sealed the deal
ISLA VISTA - UC Santa Barbara led for all but the first quarter to defeat UC Davis, 69-61, in a Big West women’s basketball showdown Thursday night before a crowd of 701 at the Thunderdome.
Santa Barbara moves to 8-4 in Big West play and 16-5 overall. UCD is now 9-3 and 16-7.
The Gauchos also earned a season sweep of the Aggies after a 55-47 win in Davis last month.
Both teams appear to be well on their way to earning one of the eight berths available in the Big West tournament next month in Henderson, Nevada that determines the league’s representative to the NCAA’s March Madness.
The Aggies led by four points early and took a 14-12 lead into the second quarter, but were simply unable to contain the outside shooting of Zoe Shaw, who hit 7 of 13 3-point attempts to lead everyone on the floor with 29 points.
The Aggies enjoyed their final lead of the night at 16-15 early in the second quarter, but UCSB went on an 8-0 run and never looked back.
The Gauchos pushed their advantage to 45-26 midway through the third quarter and never let the Aggies closer than seven points the rest of the way.
Ryann Bennett led UCD with 17 points, while Avery Sussex had 16 and Nya Epps 10. Megan Norris had 13 rebounds.
UCD struggled from distance all night long, converting just 6 of 32 3-point attempts.
The Aggies continue their road trip Saturday at 2 p.m. against Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo.