LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego women's basketball secured its first-ever Big West regular season title with a 72-65 victory over UC Santa Barbara on Saturday afternoon in LionTree Arena. The Tritons (22-8, 17-3 Big West) finish as co-champions of the Big West, sharing the title with UC Irvine and will be the No. 2 seed in next week's conference tournament in Henderson, Nev.
 
Makayla Rose led UC San Diego with 25 points, converting 10-of-18 basket attempts and adding four steals. Lev Feiman contributed 16 points, shooting 8-of-10 from the field and recording two steals. Erin Condron tallied 12 points and secured a team-best eight rebounds. Dymonique Maxie added 11 points and collected five rebounds, while also providing four assists. Maxie set the Tritons' Division I season record for assists (136), while Condron set the program D-I season record for rebounds (255).
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Gauchos (20-9, 12-8 Big West) built an early 8-0 lead in the opening quarter. The Tritons responded with a four-point swing to get on the board, 8-4. Throughout the quarter, Rose contributed significantly with a layup and a jumper, while Condron's assist to Feiman's layup further cut the deficit, 18-16. In the closing seconds, Smith drained a crucial 3-pointer with just 7.0 seconds remaining, tying the score at 19-19 by the end of the quarter.
 
After the visitors pulled ahead, 26-21, the Tritons shifted momentum midway through the second quarter with a pivotal sequence, as Rose scored a layup off a fast break at 3:36, giving them a 31-29 advantage. The teams traded the lead down the stretch, but UCSB managed to hold a narrow, 36-33, lead at halftime.
 
UC San Diego put together a strong opening run to begin the third quarter, scoring nine unanswered with four points from Rose and capped by a three from Maxie to make it 42-36. The Gauchos continued to battle, tying the score once again, 46-446, with a minute left in the quarter. The Tritons' defense was pivotal, as it forced six turnovers and allowed just 10 points in the quarter. Maxie scored layup at 0:35, securing a 48-46 advantage for the Tritons heading into the final quarter break.
 
After an early back-and-forth to start the fourth quarter that saw four ties and three lead changes, the Tritons surged ahead midway through the period. Feiman was instrumental, scoring multiple layups, including a fastbreak conversion at 4:01, which helped the Tritons regain and maintain the lead, 65-60. UC Santa Barbara closed the gap to two points, 67-65, with 1:34 to play. A crucial jumper from Rose with 51 second remaining gave the Tritons a cushion, 69-65, and Sabrina Ma secured the victory by hitting critical free throws in the final moments for the 72-65 victory.
 
QUOTABLE
"It's an understatement to say how proud I am and happy I am for our team," said UC San Diego head coach Heidi VanDerveer. "We have a resilient group, we have people that battle regardless of the situation. It took our full team effort to accomplish this. It took someone like Makayla Rose coming here to win a championship, Dymonique Maxie coming here to win a championship. It took Sabrina Ma, Rosa Smith and Erin Condron, understanding what it means to win championships here. And then getting big minutes from Lev Feiman and Michaela Fairwell. The moment wasn't too big. They took advantage of their opportunities, and they played to their strengths.
 
And obviously, our coaches prepare our team so well for these moments. This was  Vanessa [Nygaard]'s scout and she did a great job of preparing and giving our team confidence. When PhyNique [Allen], Alex [Young], Britinee [Yasukochi] or Miranda [Seto] scout, that gives us confidence. I think our team understands how they need to play and how to take advantage of their strengths. And it was on full display tonight."
 
UP NEXT
UC San Diego will head to Henderson, Nev. for the Big West Championship next week as the No. 2 seed. The Tritons secured a double bye and will await their opponent for Friday's semifinal at 2:30 p.m. in Lee's Family Forum.
 
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.