Dec. 8, 2005

Box Score

DAVIS, Calif. - Kimberly Smith scored a game-high 15 points on Thursday night and UC Davis shot 60 percent from the field as the Aggies posted their third straight win with a 73-46 nonconference women's basketball victory over Southern Utah at The Pavilion.

UC Davis improved to 4-3 heading into its matchup on Saturday at Causeway Classic rival Sacramento State. Southern Utah, which was led by 12 points from forward Charmaine Piula, dropped to 4-3. While the Aggies were benefactors of good shooting, the Thunderbirds struggled from the floor, shooting just 28.3 percent from the field.

UC Davis made 17 of 25 shots in the first half and then converted 15 of 28 attempts in the second, finishing at 60.4 percent for the game, a performance that head coach Sandy Simpson didn't try to fiddle with too much.

"We treated it like a pitcher throwing a no-hitter," he said. "The last thing we wanted to do was say something and tempt fate there."

The Aggies threatened the school record of 66 percent, set against Humboldt State in 1990 before finishing with a season-best showing.

The teams exchanged leads in the early going before a 6-0 surge by UC Davis gave the Aggies a 20-15 lead midway throught the first half. The Aggies twice led by nine points before freshman guard Genevieve Costello's runner at the buzzer put UC Davis in front by 11 points at halftime, 37-26. Porshneva and Turpin each had eight points before intermission while Campbell added seven.

Leading 41-32 early in the second half, UC Davis used a 12-2 run to make it 53-34 with 13 minutes, 29 seconds left in the game before later expanding the lead to 65-36 with 7:49 to play. The Aggies' biggest lead came with 2:56 remaining after a three-pointer from post Heather Bates made it 71-39. UC Davis only gave up 20 points after the break and didn't let Southern Utah get closer than 15 points during the final 15 minutes. The Aggies led by at least 22 points the final 10 minutes of the game.

Smith hit a pair of three-pointers as part of her 15-point effort while Ellen Porshneva made six of nine shots and scored 12 points. Guard Jackie Turpin only missed one of her five tries and scored 10 points. Turpin also had a game-high nine rebounds for UC Davis, which outrebounded the Thunderbirds, 38-33. Porshneva led the way with five assists.

Piula hit two three-pointers as part of her 12 points for Southern Utah. The Thunderbirds made just 10 of 27 shots in the first half (.370) before making only 21 percent (7 of 33) in the second. Included in that total was a 17 percent showing from beyond the three-point arc (4 of 23).

The margin of victory was the largest for UC Davis in the past two years while the three-game winning streak is the program's longest since winning five straight in 2003-04.

The Aggies will try to extend that on Saturday when they travel to face rival Sacramento State. Tipoff at Hornet Gym is 2 p.m.