FULLERTON, Calif.—UC San Diego women's basketball defeated Cal State Fullerton, 81-69, in an overtime victory on Thursday evening in Titan Gym. The Tritons (9-5, 4-0 Big West) let a double-digit fourth quarter advantage slip away before outscoring the Titans (7-8, 3-2 Big West) 15-3 in the overtime period.
 
Five Tritons scored in double-figures, led by Makayla Rose and Sabrina Ma with 22 and 21 points respectively. Erin Condron and Rosa Smith added 11 points apiece, while Dymonique Maxie chipped in 10. Maxie finished with her first career double-double with a team-high 10 assists, adding five steals on the night. Rose contributed a career-high seven assists and five steals, while leading the team with eight rebounds. Ma led the defensive efforts for the Tritons, matching her career highs in both steals (7) and blocks (3).
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Fullerton opened the contest with an early 4-0 lead, but the Tritons closed with a quick six points from Rose to make it 7-6 in favor of the home team. A timely three from Ma tied the score midway through the quarter, 9-9, and UC San Diego put together a 10-point scoring run to pull in front. The Titans scored once more to make it 19-13 at the first period break.
 
The Tritons extended their lead with a four-point swing to open the second quarter, 23-13, but the Titans responded by scoring 14 unanswered to retake the lead, 27-23. Ma ended the drought for UC San Diego with a three to spark a 12-2 run for the Tritons. Fullerton hit one more three to make it 35-32 in favor of the visitors at halftime.
 
The teams kept things close to begin the second half, battling to a 45-42 Triton advantage midway through the third period. UC San Diego then put together an eight-point scoring run beginning with a pair of free throws by Maxie and capped with back-to-back threes from Smith and Ma to create distance, 53-42. Another three by Maxie and a jumper by Rose in the final minutes gave the Tritons a 60-48 advantage heading into the quarter break.
 
UC San Diego extended a nine-point swing through the opening minutes of the fourth quarter with a pair of layups from Rose and Condron to make it, 64-48. The Titans found some momentum with a 5-0 run before Lev Feiman's jumper gave the Tritons a 66-53 lead. However, UC San Diego would be held scoreless for the final 6:33 of regulation with the Titans scoring 13 unanswered points to tie the game, 66-66, and force overtime.
 
The Tritons regained their composure at the start of the overtime period, scoring seven quick points in the opening minute. A timely three by Smith highlighted a 13-point scoring run for UC San Diego to lead 79-66. The Tritons outscored Fullerton 15-3 in the overtime frame, shooting 5-of-6 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free throw line to secure the 81-69 victory.
 
QUOTABLE
"Obviously very excited about a hard-fought win," said head coach Heidi VanDerveer. "Fullerton is a tough place to play. John Bonner does a great job, and his team plays really hard. We got some separation in the first half and came down the stretch and made plays in overtime. I think that we had people really step up for us, Makayla Rose and Dymonique Maxie—and Sabrina Ma defensively with her steals. We just had different people contributing tonight. I thought Erin Condron and Rosa Smith, in the overtime period, really made big plays for us. 
 
"I think we're a work in progress, but a winning work in progress. Winners find a way to win, and we were able to do that tonight. I'm very excited about our effort. We have a lot to learn, and a lot to work on, but I feel like we have a mature team that can learn from wins just as much as losses."
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• Sabrina Ma and Makayla Rose are the first duo in the program's Division I era to put together a pair of 20-point performances in the same contest.
• Dymonique Maxie recorded her first collegiate double-double, finishing one assist shy of her career high (11)—which was matched earlier this season at Portland State.
• Makayla Rose recorded a career high in assists (7) and finished one steal shy of her career high (6). It was her first 20-point performance in a Triton uniform.
• Sabrina Ma matched her career highs in steals (7) and blocks (3) and recorded her third 20-point performance of the season.
• The Triton defense forced CSF to commit a season-high 26 turnovers while recording a season-high 19 steals. UC San Diego also recorded a season best 23 assists.
• UC San Diego held the advantage in points off turnovers (31-24), fast break points (23-10), three-pointers (10-3), assists (23-16) and steals (19-15). Fullerton had the edge in second chance points (16-5), bench points (15-6) and rebounds (46-33).
• The Tritons are now 7-4 in the all-time series with Cal State Fullerton.
• UC San Diego starters were Erin Condron, Sabrina Ma, Dymonique Maxie, Makayla Rose and Rosa Smith.

UP NEXT
UC San Diego will return home to host UC Riverside on Saturday at 4 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.