LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego women's basketball dropped a 65-53 decision to Fresno State on Sunday afternoon in LionTree Arena. With the loss, the Tritons (1-4) moved to 0-2 in the all-time series with the Bulldogs (4-1).
 
Sabrina Ma led the Tritons with a season-high 22 points, including 9-for-10 from the free throw line, while Kayanna Spriggs finished with 16 points. Spriggs collected a team-best six rebounds, while Ma and Eri Blithikioti added five apiece. Sumayah Sugapong tallied four assists and Ma and Spriggs both collected three steals in the contest.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams got off to a slow start in the opening quarter, battling to a 6-6 tie at the first media timeout. In the final four minutes of the period, Fresno State put together a 12-point scoring run that gave the Bulldogs an 18-6 advantage at the first quarter break.
 
Fresno State extended its scoring run with a three-pointer to open the second period leading, 21-6. UC San Diego then found its rhythm, scoring eight unanswered capped by a three-point basket by Ma to cut the deficit back to single digits, 21-14. The run was ended by another three from FSU with two minutes to play. The teams were limited to free throws down the stretch and the Bulldogs took a 33-23 lead into the halftime intermission.
 
UC San Diego opened the second half with a 6-2 scoring run, with all six points coming from Ma. The Tritons cut the deficit to six points, 35-29, before FSU ended the run with a three and another jumper to pull ahead, 40-29. UC San Diego continued to battle late in the third quarter, but three timely threes by FSU prevented the Tritons from cutting into the deficit further. Fresno State took a 47-38 advantage into the final quarter break.
 
Fresno State opened the fourth period with an eight-point run to build its largest lead of the contest, 55-38. The Tritons put together a 5-0 run midway through the quarter to make it 55-43, but UC San Diego was unable to pull any closer in the final period. Fresno State finished 12-of-30 (40 percent) from three-point range and took the contest, 65-53. 
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Sabrina Ma was the first Triton this season to score 20+ points in a contest.
• Kayanna Spriggs finished two points shy of her career high with 16. 
• UC San Diego had the advantage in points in the paint (20-8), forced turnovers (18-13) and points off of turnovers (20-19), while Fresno State had the advantage in three-pointers (12-3) and rebounds (37-30). 
• The Bulldogs shot 46.9 percent from the field (40 percent from three) compared to 28.3 percent from the field (17.6 percent from three) for the Tritons.
• The Tritons are now 0-2 in the all-time series with Fresno State. 
• UC San Diego starters were Sumayah Sugapong, Sabrina Ma, Gracie Gallegos, Kayanna Spriggs and Parker Montgomery.

UP NEXT
The Tritons will hit the road for a pair of games in Colorado, taking on Air Force on Nov. 22 and face off at Denver on Nov. 24. Streaming information and live statistics will be available via UCSDTritons.com.
 
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 in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned 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.