LA JOLLA, Calif.— UC San Diego women's basketball defeated Occidental, 87-39, on Monday evening in LionTree Arena. The Tritons (3-3) shot 56 percent from the field with 54 of their points coming in the paint to defeat the Tigers (0-1).
 
All twelve Tritons scored in the contest, led by Sabrina Ma with a season-best 22 points including four made 3-pointers. Erin Condron finished with a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds, while Rosa Smith tallied 11 points and eight assists. Makayla Rose led UC San Diego's defensive efforts with five steals, while Niya Price recorded two blocked shots.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
After Occidental took a quick 5-2 lead, UC San Diego caught fire, putting together an 18-3 scoring run midway through the period. Ma scored 12 of the Tritons' 25 points in the opening quarter and UC San Diego shot 58 percent from the field to lead, 25-12, at the first break.
 
The Tigers scored seven unanswered to open the second quarter, cutting the lead to six, 25-19. Condron ended the run with back-to-back baskets in the paint to bring the lead back to double-digits, 29-19, midway through the quarter. The Tritons would hold the Tigers scoreless the rest of the period, putting up 16 unanswered and taking a 41-19 lead into the halftime intermission.
 
The teams traded baskets early in the second half before UC San Diego pulled away, extending its advantage with a 18-0 scoring run. A late basket in the paint by Tatum Jones gave the Tritons a 71-27 lead at the final quarter break.
 
UC San Diego saw good minutes from its freshmen in the fourth quarter, paced by Niya Price with six points. The Tritons remained tough on defense and shot 54 percent from the field in the final quarter to close out the contest with a 87-39 victory.
 
QUOTABLE
"I thought it was a really good evening for our team," said head coach Heidi VanDerveer. "Everyone scored and we got really good minutes for some people. Tatum [Jones] came in and did a great job. She gave us great energy. We had our usual suspects playing really hard. Makayla [Rose] plays hard, Dymonique [Maxie] plays hard. Rosa Smith with eight assists, Erin [Condron] with a double-double. I thought Erin and Sabrina [Ma] really set the tone for us with Makayla. You know, it's fun to see people get out and cut loose and play, especially in second half. Oxy is going to do great in their league, but it doesn't matter who we play. We have to play up to our standard. And I thought we competed tonight, especially in second half."
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• It was the first 20-point game of the season for Sabrina Ma and first double-double for Erin Condron.
• Tatum Jones made her collegiate debut in the contest.
• UC San Diego had the advantage in points off turnovers (21-11), second chance points (16-5), bench points (27-9), points in the paint (54-8) and fast break points (20-4).
• The Tritons are now 15-2 in the all-time series with Occidental.
• UC San Diego starters were Erin Condron, Lev Feiman, Sabrina Ma, Makayla Rose and Rosa Smith.

 
UP NEXT
UC San Diego will travel to the Pacific Northwest for the holiday weekend, taking on Washington on Nov. 28 and Portland State on Nov. 30. Friday's game will stream on B1G+ and Sunday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+. Live statistics will be available for both games 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.