Final Stats

DAVIS, Calif. -- UC Davis senior forward Sydnee Fipps tied a career high with 29 points to go with 10 rebounds and the host Aggies shot 55 percent from the floor, holding off visiting UC Riverside for a 70-61 Big West Conference victory on Thursday night at The Pavilion.

The win improved UC Davis to 7-8 overall and 2-1 in league play, posting its third victory in its last four contests. The Highlanders, led by Brittany Crain's game-high 34 points, dropped to 10-7 overall and 1-2 in the Big West.

"Thankfully, when we do get a shot, we're making them," Head Coach Jennifer Gross said. "We're turning these games into nailbiters, we're just turning the ball over a lot, but we sure can score the ball when we get the opportunity."

It was the first double-double of the season, and the fifth of Fipps' career, as the senior finished 10-of-15 from the floor and 5-of-9 from three-point range for the game, matching her UC Davis best set against Long Beach State on Jan. 31, 2013. Classmate Kelsey Harris added 16 points and six rebounds, as the duo combined to score the final 11 points of the game for the Aggies.

"It's not just that (Sydnee's) scoring, nine defensive rebounds -- we needed all those," Gross said. "I thought that she had a complete game, it wasn't just scoring. She was out there working her butt off defensively, she was rebounding for us as well, but to see her confidence, when she's hitting those shots... I love to see her in that mode."

Junior Celia Marfone added a season-high 13 rebounds to go with four points and five assists, helping UC Davis out-rebound UC Riverside, 41-30, for the game. It was the fourth consecutive double-digit rebounding game for Marfone, who is averaging 11.3 rebounds per game during that stretch.

Crain, who finished 12-of-25 from the field with six three-pointers, was joined in double figures by Annelise Ito, who added 11 points in the loss.

The Aggies led for all but two minutes on Thursday night, but could not pull away from the pesky Highlanders, opening the game on a 12-2 run and leading by double digits on four occasions only to watch as UC Riverside found its way back.

Leading by five at the break, Fipps nailed a three-pointer out of the locker room, and the Aggies eventually pushed the lead to 51-41 with 12:43 to play, but an 8-3 burst -- five of those by Ito -- made it a four-point game four minutes later.

The battle continued between two of the Big West's top scorers as Fipps and Crain traded baskets, the latter leading her team back to within two points on a pair of free throws with 4:51 remaining, making it a 59-57 UC Davis lead. 10 of 12

On the Aggies' next possession, Fipps came up big with her fifth three-pointer of the night and followed with a pair from the line after Crain, who scored 10 of her team's final 12 points, scored inside for a 64-59 advantage.

Out of a timeout, Harris nailed another three and later added a pair of free throws to go with a 1-for-2 from the line by Fipps as UC Davis finished on an 8-2 run and held Riverside to just 1-for-8 from the floor over the final three minutes to hold off the Highlanders.

The 54.8 percent from the field was a season-high for UC Davis, while the defense held UCR to just 31 percent for the game.

UC Davis is back in action on Saturday afternoon (Jan. 17) as the Aggies welcome Cal State Fullerton to The Pavilion for a 2 p.m. tip.

UC DAVIS 70, UC RIVERSIDE 61

UC RIVERSIDE (10-7, 1-2)
Crain, Brittany 12-25 4-6 34; Ito, Annelise 4-12 3-3 11; Martin, Akilah 2-10 0-0 6; Curry, Michelle 1-8 2-2 4; Adams, Dynese 1-8 1-4 3; Wilson, Jaelyn 1-5 0-0 3; Morrison, Tahvia 0-0 0-0 0; Nyingifa, Inara 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-68 10-15 61.

UC DAVIS (7-8, 2-1)
Fipps, Sydnee 10-15 4-6 29; Harris, Kelsey 5-9 2-2 16; Salvatore, Brianna 3-5 2-2 9; Doherty, Alyson 2-7 3-4 7; Nagel, Rachel 2-3 0-1 5; Marfone, Celia 1-3 2-3 4; Nafekh, Dani 0-0 0-0 0; Gianotti, Pele 0-0 0-1 0; Beyer, Lauren 0-0 0-0 0; Johnson, Heidi 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-42 13-19 70.

UC Riverside.................. 29 32 - 61
UC Davis...................... 34 36 - 70

3-point goals--UC Riverside 9-30 (Crain, Brittany 6-14; Martin, Akilah 2-6; Wilson, Jaelyn 1-4; Adams, Dynese 0-5; Curry, Michelle 0-1), UC Davis 11-21 (Fipps, Sydnee 5-9; Harris, Kelsey 4-8; Salvatore, Brianna 1-2; Nagel, Rachel 1-1; Marfone, Celia 0-1). Fouled out--UC Riverside-None, UC Davis-None. Rebounds--UC Riverside 30 (Wilson, Jaelyn 8), UC Davis 41 (Marfone, Celia 13). Assists--UC Riverside 16 (Martin, Akilah 6), UC Davis 18 (Marfone, Celia 5). Total fouls--UC Riverside 19, UC Davis 14. Technical fouls--UC Riverside-None, UC Davis-None. A-601