Feb. 4, 2010

Final Stats

SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. - Brittany Lange canned a career-high six three-pointers in the second half and finished with a game-high 18 points, and host Cal Poly outscored the UC Davis women's basketball team by 27 points after halftime for a 69-48 Big West Conference win on Thursday night, giving the Mustangs first place in the league.

The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak by UC Davis - its longest since the 2007-08 season - which fell to 14-7 overall and 6-2 in the Big West. Cal Poly, which also got 15 points and 15 rebounds from senior Kristina Santiago, improved to 14-7 overall and 7-2 in the conference.

Vicky Deely scored 10 points for UC Davis while Rachel Clancy had 14 and Abby Bloetscher 10 for the Mustangs.

UC Davis held Cal Poly to its lowest first-half total of the season, taking a 28-22 lead. However, the Mustangs shot 60.7% from the field from then on, including a blistering 71.4% (10 of 14) from three-point territory, outscoring the Aggies 47-20 over the final 20 minutes. UC Davis converted just 20% (5 of 25) from the floor in the second half.

"They shot the ball terrific in the second half and we couldn't throw it in the ocean from a row boat," said Aggie coach Sandy Simpson. "So, the combination is pretty lethal in any game. We've had a couple on the other side of that where we shot the ball well and the other team struggled to score."

The Aggies led 35-30 with 16 minutes, 24 seconds to go in the second half but Cal Poly made three straight treys during an 11-0 run, and then added two more in a row by Clancy and Lange for a 49-40 advantage with 11:28 to go.

UC Davis didn't get closer than seven the rest of the way as Cal Poly pulled away. Clancy's fourth three-pointer made it 61-43 with just over four minutes to play and the Mustangs cruised to the win.

The Aggies were just 3 of 14 from three-point in the second half while shooting just 31.5% from the field during the game overall.

The second half was in contrast to a highly competitive first half in which the teams played close most of the way. UC Davis held the early advantage, taking a 9-4 lead with 11:23 left in the half but the Mustangs countered with a 9-0 run - highlighted by three-pointers from Ashlee Stewart and Ashlee Burns - to take a 13-9 lead three minutes later.

Cal Poly held that lead, eventually building it to five points before UC Davis capped six straight points on a three-pointer from Haylee Donaghe to go up 17-16. The teams see-sawed and were close before a trey from Cortney French and two buckets from Kasey Riecks - the latter as the first half expired - helped the Aggies a 28-22 halftime lead.

UC Davis and Cal Poly are equal in the all-important loss column with the Aggies traveling on Saturday to face UC Santa Barbara, a 71-34 winner of Pacific on Thursday night.

"We've got to shake this one off. This one's gone for us," Simpson said. "We've got to get ready for Santa Barbara on Saturday. We're still in good shape. We have to have a real short memory on this one."

The Aggies and Gauchos will tip off at 2 p.m.