UC Davis' dramatic comeback stuns Hawaii in Big West women's basketball opener
Aggies score game's final 18 points on way to 68-63 win
UC Davis head women’s basketball coach Jen Gross was at a loss to remember a comeback quite like this one.
With her team trailing Big West favorite Hawaii, 63-50, midway through the fourth quarter, the Aggies went on an incredible 18-0 run to close the game and take a 68-63 win from the Rainbow Wahine in the conference opener Thursday night at the University Credit Union Center.
“This has to be up there with the best of them,” Gross said through a wide smile.
“There were a lot of times when we could have just given up, but that’s not this team. I’m still trying to process exactly what happened out there in the last four minutes. I’m really proud of our effort to just stay with it and come up with a great win.”
The Aggies are now 7-2 overall and 1-0 in Big West play, while Hawaii is 4-4 and 0-1.
Hawaii was the pre-season pick to win the conference title in a vote of Big West coaches, with UCD picked to finish third.
The Aggies now have three non-conference games and won’t return to Big West action until Jan. 1 at Cal State Northridge, a fact that made Gross laugh as she noted, “We get to be 1-0 for a whole month. This is such a great way to start league play with a win like this over a very good Hawaii team.”
A victory appeared unlikely after Bailey Flavell hit a pair of free throws to give Hawaii a seemingly insurmountable 63-50 lead with 4:41 remaining.
At that point, a few folks in the crowd of 569 began to put on their jackets in anticipation of heading out into the chilly night, but UCD’s Nya Epps and Ryann Bennett combined for six quick points to pause the anticipated exodus.
When Tegan Young scored from close range to cut the deficit to 63-58 with 2:26 left, suddenly it was game on.
The Aggie defense was superb down the stretch, forcing turnovers and denying the Rainbow Wahine any good looks at the basket.
Epps pulled down a defensive rebound, then raced into the forecourt to bury a 3-pointer and the Aggies were within 63-61 with 1:55 to play.
It was Epps again from long range after a Bennett rebound and suddenly UCD had an improbable 64-63 lead with still 1:11 on the clock.
It was then that Epps came up with the play of the game, stepping into the defensive lane to swipe a Hawaii pass at 0:42.
Another bucket by Young pushed the advantage to 66-63 and it was Epps who pulled down a defensive rebound at 0:04.
Megan Norris then calmly sank two free throws to end the run and the game.
“We knew we were going to win that game right from the start,” noted Norris, who finished with 26 points, 11 rebounds, two assists and a steal.
“Our guards really came through for us at the end by putting a lot of defensive pressure on them. This is such a great win for us.”
Gross was in complete agreement with Norris’ assessment.
“For a long time our flow was not good and we were missing a lot of shots,” said the Aggie coach.
“But our defensive energy turned the game around down the stretch. This team just continues to believe they can do it, no matter what. To get a win like this, despite the odds, is a big deal for our team.”
Bennett finished with 16 points while Epps had 12 points and four steals. Victoria Baker also had four thefts.
The Aggies face a tough non-conference date against Gonzaga at 6 p.m. Saturday in Spokane before returning home to host Chico State Dec. 14 at 2 p.m.
Reach Bob Dunning at bobdunning@thewaryone.com