LA JOLLA, Calif. ? The UC San Diego women's basketball team held visiting Cal State L.A. to just 17 first half points and went on to post a convincing 79-59 conference victory Friday night at RIMAC Arena. Annette Ilg and Chelsea Carlisle scored 15 points apiece to pace the Tritons, who recorded their ninth victory in the last 10 games.
With the win, UCSD improves to 10-2 overall and 3-0 in California Collegiate Athletic Association play. The Tritons have now won three straight and nine of their last 10 league games dating back to last season.
Cal State L.A. falls to 1-10, 0-4 CCAA after suffering its eighth consecutive loss.
UCSD shot just 37% (26-71) for the game, but recorded 21 assists on their 26 field goals. The Tritons made a season-high seven three-pointers, finishing 7-of-24 from behind the arc.
While the Tritons struggled to shoot the ball at times, they were extremely active on the defensive end of the floor, forcing the Golden Eagles into 24 turnovers. UCSD also finished with 15 steals, the team's second-highest total of the season.
Ilg finished 5-of-11 from the field and drilled a pair of threes to reach double figures for the second time in the last three games. The native of Avon Lake, Ohio also tallied three rebounds, three assists, and three steals in 23 minutes.
Carlisle had another strong performance off the bench, finishing with 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting. She was 3-of-8 from behind the arc and racked up four rebounds and two assists. The freshman guard has now scored in double figures in three of her four games as a Triton.
Senior forward Michelle Osier finished with 11 points and seven rebounds, keeping her streak of consecutive games with at least 10 points in tact. She has reached double figures in all 12 games this season and scored 10 or more in the final 10 games of 2007-08.
UCSD effectively put the game out of reach early in the first half, racing out to a 16-5 lead following a pair of free throws from Osier at the 14:48 mark. Ilg's layup eight minutes later pushed the Triton lead to 21 points (28-7) and three consecutive triples from Carlisle to close the half gave UCSD an insurmountable 40-17 advantage at the break.
The Tritons shot just 36% in the period, but held the Golden Eagles to an identical 36% clip and forced a total of 19 turnovers. UCSD dominated the paint 14-4 and hauled down nine rebounds on the offensive end to help build the 23-point halftime cushion.
Forward Joy Mason scored a game-high 17 points for Cal State L.A., which shot 38% for the game and outscored UCSD 42-39 in the second half.
The Tritons will look to make it 4-for-4 in CCAA play when they host Cal State Dominguez Hills on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.
