HAYWARD, Calif. - Senior guard
Annette Ilg scored a career-high 23 points to lead the 14th-ranked UC San Diego women's basketball team to a 78-61 victory over Cal State East Bay in a CCAA matchup Tuesday night at Pioneer Gymnasium. The Tritons shot better than 46% from the field and scored a season-best 78 points to knock off the Pioneers on their home floor.
With the win, UCSD improves to 4-0 overall and 3-0 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association heading into this weekend's UCSD Women's Basketball Classic at RIMAC Arena. All four of the Tritons' victories this season have come on the road.
Cal State East Bay falls to 0-5 overall and 0-3 in the CCAA with the loss. The Pioneers are in their first season as a member of the conference.
Ilg led three Tritons in double figures, finishing 11-for-19 from the floor to eclipse her previous career mark of 21 points that came against Cal State Dominguez Hills last season. She also finished with two rebounds and matched a career best with five steals in her best performance of the young season.
Chelsea Carlisle scored 14 points on 6-of-14 shooting for the Tritons, while
Lauren Freidenberg registered her first career double-double, tallying 12 points and 10 rebounds.
The Tritons raced out to an early 20-3 lead after the game's first five minutes as Ilg and Carlisle combined to score 13 of UCSD's first 15 points. The Pioneers answered right back, however, scoring 14 unanswered over the next 4:35 to pull within three.
Three straight baskets from
Kristen Cabral, Freidenberg, and Ilg gave the Tritons a 28-19 advantage, but East Bay would chip away at the lead and eventually cut the deficit to just one (36-35) on a jumper by Amaris Sanders with 45 seconds left in the half.
Charity Smith then knocked down a jumper on the next possession for UCSD and
Erin Grady scored to give the Tritons a five-point cushion at the break.
UCSD opened the second half on a 10-3 run to go up 50-38 and Carlisle's three-pointer with 12:37 left made it 60-41. The Tritons cruised from there, leading by as many as 25 (72-47) in the decisive second period.
The Tritons shot 46.7% (35-75) from the floor on the way to their top scoring output of 2009-10 and highest total since erupting for 84 points in a victory over Cal State L.A. last February. The team's previous high this year was 71 points in the season-opening win over Grand Canyon.
Claudia Nelson and Andrea Rodriguez scored 18 points apiece to pace the Pioneers, who shot just under 43% (24-56) for the game and connected on 6-of-18 three-point tries.
The Pioneers also held a 42-41 advantage on the glass, but UCSD scored a whopping 38 points off 25 CSUEB turnovers. The Tritons held a 17-12 advantage in bench scoring.
UCSD opens its four-team tournament against Biola University this Friday at 7:00 p.m. The Tritons will then face Alaska University on the second day of competition, also at 7:00.
