SEASIDE, Calif. - The UC San Diego women's basketball team climbed back from a 15-point deficit to take down Cal State Monterey Bay, 67-57, in a California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) matchup Saturday at the Kelp Bed.
“I'm very proud of my team's effort tonight,” said head coach Heidi VanDerveer. “A mark of a championship team is finding ways to win and dealing with adversity. That was what happened tonight.”
With the result, the Tritons improve their winning streak to six, and are now 14-2 overall and 9-1 in the conference. They remain second in the standings. The Otters drop to 7-9 overall and 3-6 in CCAA play.
UCSD was led by senior forward Farrah Shokoor, who grabbed her 10th double-double of the season with 24 points and 19 rebounds to go along with four blocks, all game highs. Senior guard Jamie Katuna pitched in 19 points and brought down a career-best eight boards, seven of those being offensive. The Tritons outscored the Otters 18-0 from the charity stripe, as CSUMB did not have a free throw attempt.
Victoria Dorn paced the Otters with 19 points behind five treys. Jazmine Johnson also scored in double figures for CSUMB with 14 points and 11 rebounds off the bench.
With 7:49 remaining in the third frame, the Tritons found themselves down 15 points after a Dorn three. UCSD cut the margin to four, 50-46, with one period remaining after a long-range basket from sophomore guard Taylor Tanita.
CSUMB began the fourth quarter with a quick score to increase the gap to six. From there, the Tritons went on a 7-0 run to take a one-point advantage, 53-52, following a Shokoor layup. After the Otters grabbed the lead back on the ensuing possession, UCSD would go on another run, this time 9-0, with six straight points by Katuna ahead of a big three-pointer by Beth Mounier, for a 62-54 advantage. The Tritons hit their free throws down the stretch for the win.
UCSD struggled to start the game, only coming away with nine points in the opening 10 minutes and trailing 14-9 at the end of the first period.
The Tritons evened the score in the second quarter, 24-24, after a Shokoor free throw. CSUMB would outscore the Tritons 11-2 to close the period as UCSD was behind by nine at halftime, 35-26.
"We were a little sluggish in the first half," added VanDerveer. "We were a little out of sync offensively."
UCSD returns home to RIMAC Arena on Friday, Jan. 22 for Spirit Night. The second-place Tritons welcome in first-place Cal State Dominguez Hills (11-6), the Toros still unbeaten in CCAA play at 9-0 and winners of eight straight. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:30 p.m.
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