LA JOLLA, Calif. ? The 10th-ranked UC San Diego women's basketball team trailed for much of the second half but used a late rally to overtake visiting Cal Poly Pomona, 63-57 in a CCAA matchup Friday night at RIMAC Arena. All five starters reached double figures for the Tritons, who won their 15th game in a row, one shy of the program's all-time record for consecutive victories.
UCSD improves to 22-2 overall and 15-0 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association, maintaining its perfect conference record with five games to play. With the victory, the 2008-09 Tritons became the third team in program history to win 15 consecutive games and UCSD can now tie the all-time mark with a win over Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday.
Cal Poly Pomona falls to 14-11 overall and 10-6 in the CCAA after suffering its third consecutive loss.
The Tritons trailed 46-42 with 10:46 remaining before
Annette Ilg converted 1-of-2 at the free throw line,
Alexis Gaskin hit a jumper, and
Chelsea Carlisle knocked down a three-pointer to give UCSD the lead for good with 8:38 remaining.
UCSD then scored seven of the next nine points to take a 53-48 advantage on Carlisle's breakaway layup with just under five minutes to play. The freshman guard hit a jumper two minutes later to give the Tritons their biggest lead of the evening at 59-50 and the Broncos would get no closer than five the rest of the way.
Leilani Martin hit 5-of-6 shots from the field and finished with 14 points to lead five players in double figures for UCSD. She also snared six rebounds.
Ilg scored 13 points on 4-of-6 shooting and grabbed five boards, while Carlisle put in 12 and dished out five assists.
Michelle Osier recorded her sixth double-double of the season, tallying 13 points and 11 rebounds to go with four assists and three steals. Gaskin finished with 10 points, connecting on 3-of-6 shots from the field.
Reyana Colson led all scorers with 21 points on 10-of-22 shooting. She also grabbed nine points, and finished with a game-high seven assists.
UCSD shot 43% for the game, 23-of-54, while Cal Poly Pomona finished at 41%, 24-of-58. The Broncos held a 40-36 rebounding advantage, but the Tritons scored 20 points on 14 turnovers by the visitors.
UCSD raced out to an early 11-5 lead on a Martin jumper and led by as many as seven points in the first half, before Pomona closed to within 27-25 with 1:51 to play. Five straight points from Osier gave the Tritons a seven-point advantage before Colson scored to make it 32-27 at the break.
The Tritons will look to keep rolling against the Coyotes Saturday night at 5:30 p.m.
