Dec. 18, 2005

Final Stats

MORAGA, Calif. - Phil Rasmussen scored 22 points to lead UC Davis past Southeastern Louisiana, 69-64, in overtime Sunday evening in the consolation game of the Saint Mary's Shamrock Office Solutions Classic in Moraga, Calif. The Aggies overcame a 10-point first half deficit and held the Lions without a field goal in the decisive overtime period. Thomas Juillerat added 14 points, eight assists and six rebounds off the bench while Kyle Brucculeri finished with 10 points. Ricky Woods led the Lions with 18 points and 16 rebounds.

The game started ominously for the Aggies as the Lions (5-4) built a 14-4 cushion just over six minutes into the first half. UC Davis (2-7) came back to eventually take the lead four minutes later. The Aggies did so with a 12-0 run that featured six points from Rasmussen and was capped off by a Juilerrat layup at the 9:50 mark to give them a 16-14 lead. Neither team led by more than three points the rest of the half as UC Davis went to the locker room leading 29-28.

Southeastern Louisiana scored the first four points of the second half and led 33-29 with 19:01 left. After a UC Davis timeout, the Aggies responded with a 12-3 run. A Brucculeri three-pointer at the 14:36 mark gave UC Davis a 41-36 lead. Brucculeri scored all 10 of his points in the second half.

After the Lions pulled to within one, Vince Oliver made the first of two critical three-pointers to give the Aggies a 44-40 lead with 11:54 left in the second half. Southeastern Louisiana would then go on a 7-2 run to lead 47-46 at the 9:04 mark.

After the Aggies regained a three-point lead, Oliver made another trey with 6:38 remaining to give UC Davis a 53-47 cushion. The Lions would climb back to eventually take another lead when Woods made two free throws with 1:56 left to make it 59-57.

Rasmussen responded with two free throws of his own 23 seconds later to tie the game at 59. A Chris Lee bucket with 1:12 left gave the Lions a 61-59 lead before Oliver tied the game on the next possession with a layup. Both teams had a possession in the final minute, but both ended with turnovers after missed field goals.

In the overtime period, it was all UC Davis. The Aggies' defense stymied Lion shooters as Southeastern Louisiana was held to 0-for-7 from the field. In the meantime, Jesse Lopez Low scored all six of his points in the extra period to go along with three rebounds. Besides buckets by Lopez Low and Rasmussen to start the overtime, all points scored by both teams were from the foul line.

UC Davis held the Lions to 37 percent shooting, a season low for an Aggie opponent. In addition, the Aggies committed just nine turnovers, tying a season low set in the victory against Stanford on Dec. 4.

"This was a good win for us, and it was done in a way that we'll have to win games," said UC Davis head coach Gary Stewart. "We played forty-five minutes and turned the ball over nine times. We competed on the backboard and got some balance in our scoring."

"To be able to win twenty-four hours after a tough, emotional game and to bounce back is a testament to the players' resolve," added Stewart. "I'm very pleased with the development. We're coming along. As we continue the maturation process, we've got some good days ahead of us."

For his efforts, Rasmussen was one of six players in the four-team field to be named to the All-Tournament Team.

UC Davis next hosts Bethany Dec. 21 at The Pavilion. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m., and the game can be heard live on KSAC 1240-AM and www.ucdavisaggies.com.