Dec. 6, 2007

Box Score

DAVIS, Calif. - Heather Bowman scored 23 points and had 12 rebounds, and Gonzaga outscored UC Davis 32-4 over an 11-minute span of the second half on Thursday night to turn a three-point deficit into a big lead, as the Bulldogs beat the Aggies 71-58 in a nonconference women's basketball game at The Pavilion.

The loss was the second in a row for UC Davis which fell to 5-2 heading into Sunday's matchup at nationally ranked Arizona State. Gonzaga, the defending West Coast Conference champion, snapped a three-game losing streak and improved to 5-3.

Senior Jessica Campbell scored 13 points to lead the Aggies while junior Haylee Donaghe had 10 points and a team-high six rebounds. UC Davis, which shot just 3 of 22 from three-point land, was only 31.8 percent (21 of 66) from the field overall.

Michelle Elliott hit five three-pointers and scored 19 points for the Bulldogs, who committed 30 turnovers but hit eight treys overall and held a 51-36 rebounding advantage, including 22 on the offensive end.

UC Davis led 41-38 with 16 minutes, 32 seconds remaining in the second half but Tiffanie Shives scored five consecutive points to kickstart a big run by the Bulldogs that eventually led to them scoring 32 of the next 36 points to take a 70-45 lead with 5:03 to go.

"We kept forcing turnovers but we didn't take advantage of them," said Aggie coach Sandy Simpson. "We didn't make them pay on the other side. We gave them a window to get back into the game."

Elliott hit four three-pointers and scored 12 points during the run while Shives and Bowman each had eight points. UC Davis, meanwhile, was just 2 of 18 from the field during that span.

"They did a great job with their zone," said Simpson. "We had to work hard for our shots."

UC Davis and Gonzaga battled through a competitive first half which saw seven lead changes and four ties. The Aggies led 8-4 early on and then trailed by a pair later before a 9-2 surge midway through the first half turned a 15-13 deficit into a 22-15 lead with 7:13 to go. A layup by Bowman with 20 seconds left before intermission gave Gonzaga a 34-33 lead.

UC Davis, which had just 21 turnovers in the game overall, forced 17 by the Bulldogs in the first half but shot 38 percent from the field and trailed 22-15 on the boards.

Kirsten Commins and Campbell tallied buckets early in the second half to help give the Aggies a pair of leads, but a 41-38 lead after Campbell's basket with 16:32 left in the game was erased by Shives and the Bulldogs' big run.

Bowman was 8 of 22 from the field and had eight offensive rebounds to help with her totals while Elliott added six boards and Courtney Vandersloot pitched in with five assists.

Commins had four assists for the Aggies who also had 13 steals, four of them from Anna Harp.

UC Davis will return to action on Sunday when it travels to face No. 18/19 Arizona State at noon (PST). The game marks the third against a Pac-10 Conference foe this year and the second versus a nationally ranked team.