DAVIS, Calif. – The Long Beach State women’s basketball team was forced to come from behind for a second time in as many games this week, but the final result yielded a different outcome as it lost to UC Davis, 63-60.
Unlike the game against UC Irvine on Thursday, the 49ers were unable to extend their lead to anything of significance because of a rough night shooting and an inability to establish themselves at the free throw line.
However, despite the rough night on offense in which the 49ers shot just 35.6 percent compared to the Aggies 44.2 percent, The Beach was presented with multiple chances to take the game late thanks to a healthy combination of good team defense and unforced turnovers by UC Davis.
“We dug ourselves into a hole, and they played really well in the first half,” head coach Jody Wynn said. “We were able to recover on defense in the second half and our presses were really good.”
With about eight minutes left in in the first half, a rare four-point play by Idit Oryon sparked a 17-2 run for the Aggies and would eventually hold a 39-28 advantage at the half.
LBSU came out of the locker room as hot as any team could, scoring the first nine points of the second half which snowballed into a 16-4 run that seemed to stop as soon as the 49ers took the lead, 44-43.
Both teams continued to trade baskets late in the second half, and a layup by junior Alex Sanchez tied it up at 60-60 with 33.1 seconds to go.
“We called a timeout and Alex [Sanchez] made a beautiful layup to tie the game,” Wynn said. “We were right there, and it was an entertaining basketball game, but we just fell short.”
Aggies forward Kelsey Harris didn’t have the hot stroke her team is used to seeing early in this one, but she sunk a trey in the corner when her team needed it most, leaving 14.3 seconds left on the clock for LBSU to try and send the game to overtime.
However, open three-pointers by Lauren Spargo and Raven Benton came up short, and the 49ers were sent home with the loss.
Benton and Spargo led LBSU with 10 points on the afternoon and Ella Clark scored 8 and registered a team-high seven rebounds.
Aggies big-woman Sydnee Fipps led her team in points and boards with 18 and 10, respectively, to go along with four steals. Harris, who was 2-for-11 from long distance prior to her final three, finished the game with 11 points and four boards.
The 49ers return to the Walter Pyramid next week, where they’ll face UC Santa Barbara on Thursday and Cal Poly on Saturday.
Pingback: ThisJustM | 49ers’ comeback effort falls short in loss at UC Davis