LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego women's basketball defeated Occidental, 86-51, to open the 2024-25 season on Monday evening in LionTree Arena.
 
The Tritons (1-0) were paced by junior transfer Sabrina Ma with 15 points in her first game for UC San Diego. True freshman Nicki Polocheck collected 14 points in her collegiate debut and Sumayah Sugapong finished with 13 points. 
 
Three Tritons finished with five steals apiece, including Polocheck, Gracie Gallegos and senior transfer Kayanna Spriggs. Spriggs also led the team with seven rebounds including three offensive boards, while Gallegos and Damilola Sule each collected five. Eri Blithikioti collected a team-high three assists and Gallegos led the Tritons with two blocks.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams traded baskets to begin the contest, battling to a 6-6 tie midway through the opening quarter. Occidental then put together a 10-point run to take the lead, 14-6. The Tritons responded down the stretch, scoring 10 unanswered highlighted by back-to-back three pointers by Smith and Ma to end the period. UC San Diego took a 16-14 advantage into the first quarter break.
 
The Tritons found their rhythm in the second period, outscoring the Tigers, 35-12, and forcing 10 turnovers. Ma was a perfect 5-for-5 from the field, including two made threes for a team-high eight points in the period. UC San Diego opened the quarter with an eight-point scoring run and never looked back, building a 51-26 advantage at halftime.
 
UC San Diego extended its lead to as many as 27 in the opening minutes of the second half, leading 58-31 with 7:45 on the clock. Nine different Tritons scored in the period and the Tritons took a 68-44 lead into the final quarter break.
 
In the final quarter, UC San Diego used a six-point scoring run to open the period and extend its lead, 74-44. The Tritons outscored the Tigers 12-3 down the stretch, including the final three baskets for Polocheck and UC San Diego went on to earn its first win of the season, 86-51.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Three Tritons made their UC San Diego debut, including Sabrina Ma, Nicki Polocheck and Kayanna Spriggs.
  • The contest also marked Polocheck's collegiate debut.
• UC San Diego held the advantage in all statistical categories including points off of turnovers (31-7), bench points (34-5), points in the paint (51-20), steals (21-5) and rebounds (42-34).
• With the win, the Tritons are now 14-2 in the all-time series with Occidental.
• UC San Diego starters were Sumayah Sugapong, Sabrina Ma, Gracie Gallegos, Kayanna Spriggs and Junae Mahan.

UP NEXT
The Tritons will hit the road for a midweek matchup at Sacramento State on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ 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.