LA JOLLA, Calif. – The UC San Diego women's basketball team narrowly fell to UC Irvine, 64-58, at RIMAC Arena this evening. With the outcome, the Tritons move to 5-8 both overall and in Big West Conference play, while the Anteaters improve to 12-7 on the season and 10-3 in conference action.
Prior to the game, the Tritons honored their two graduating seniors,
Tyla Turner and
Layla Ybarra-Harvey, for Senior Night.
The Tritons jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead in the first two minutes of the contest, but the Anteaters then responded with a 10-0 run. The teams traded baskets for the remainder of the quarter, and the Tritons narrowly trailed, 13-11, at the end of the first period.
UC San Diego's defense was strong in the early minutes of the next quarter. The Tritons did not allow the Anteaters to score until the 5:48 mark, and forced four turnovers prior to that. Each team put up 12 points for the remainder of the quarter, and UC San Diego held a 28-25 advantage at halftime.
Coming out of halftime, the Anteaters were on fire. In the third quarter, UC Irvine put up 22 points on 9-16 shooting. The Tritons scored 11 points on 5-20 shooting, and trailed the Anteaters, 47-39, heading into the final 10 minutes.
At the start of the fourth quarter, the Tritons quickly erased the deficit as they put up eight unanswered points to tie the game. UC Irvine was able to regain its composure though. Despite shooting 3-10 from the field, UC Irvine utilized its chances at the free throw line (9-10) in order to secure its 64-58 win.
QUOTABLE
Head Coach
Heidi VanDerveer spoke after the game.
TRITON TIDBITS
- Sydney Brown earned a double-double with a game-high 21 points and team-best 13 rebounds.
- Both graduating seniors started the game. Tyla Turner made her 33rd start of her Triton career, while Layla Ybarra-Harvey made her 11th.
- Tyla Turner's nine rebounds were a season high.
- There were 11 lead changes and eight ties throughout the evening.
UP NEXT
Next, the Tritons will close out their 2020-21 season with a pair of games at Cal State Fullerton. The Tritons and Titans will face off at 5 p.m. on Mar. 5-6.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions III and II and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America accolades, while 37 have received prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.
Return To Sport… Safely
In order for UC San Diego scholar-athletes to be permitted to return to training and competition safely and within federal, state, local and university guidelines, the athletic department implemented a number of measures designed to complement and enhance the university's highly-successful Return To Learn program. Notable actions include being physically distanced when practical, including during out-of-season training sessions; wearing masks, except when undergoing physically strenuous exercise; and maintaining proper hygiene. Athletes, coaches and staff are testing at a higher frequency than the campus population, teams adhere to CDC, NCAA and Big West Conference guidelines and department officials participate in regular meetings with conference and university-affiliated physicians and the UC San Diego emergency operations staff.
