POMONA, Calif. - After leading by five points at the end of three quarters, the 25th-ranked UC San Diego women's basketball team outscored Cal Poly Pomona 19-10 in the final 10 minutes of play to secure a 64-50 win in a California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) matchup Saturday at Kellogg Arena.
WIth the win, the Tritons are now 17-3 overall and 12-2 in conference play. CPP drops to 7-13 overall and 5-8 in the CCAA.
The Broncos elected to slow the pace, using most of the shot clock on almost every possession and limited the Tritons to just 51 field goal attempts. CPP used its size to outrebound the Tritons 46-38, including 22-11 on the offensive glass, and scored 28 points inside the paint. UCSD shot well from behind the arc at a 42.3 percent (11-26) clip.
“I'm very excited about our team's win,” said head coach Heidi VanDerveer. “Pomona tried to slow down the game and take advantage of their strength. They have a dominant low post game and we did a great job of keeping our poise.”
Junior guard Beth Mounier led the Tritons with a game-high 18 points, aided by four treys. Senior guard Jamie Katuna pitched in 14 points and senior forward Farrah Shokoor collected her 11th double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds. Sophomore guard Taylor Tanita dished out a game-best seven assists. Mary Williams and Priscilla Brooks paced CPP with 13 points each. Brooks brought down a game-high 16 boards.
UCSD raced out to a 12-7 lead after a Mounier three-pointer to start. The Broncos evened the score, 13-13, with a Jordyn Shane jumper and took the lead on the next possession on another Shane basket. The Tritons ended the quarter with five unanswered with a layup from Katuna and a trey from freshman guard Joleen Yang to lead 18-15 at the end of the opening quarter.
CPP tied the game, 21-21, after a Brooks layup with five minutes left before the intermission. From there, UCSD went on an 8-2 run, with five points coming from Mounier, to lead by six. The Tritons took a four-point advantage into halftime, 29-25, after a Bronco score.
UCSD increased the margin to eight, 39-31, after two free throws from Shokoor. A Katuna three-pointer gave the Tritons a five-point lead, 45-40, going into the final period.
UCSD took care of business in the fourth frame, pouring in 19 and limiting CPP to 10 points. The Tritons made seven-of-eight free throws down the stretch to seal the game.
UCSD will have a whole week off before traveling to Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday, Feb. 6. Tip-off is set for 5:30 p.m.
#TritonsRising
