Final Stats

IRVINE, Calif. -- UC Davis junior Morgan Bertsch shared game-high honors with 19 points, while senior Pele Gianotti finished with 15 points and nine rebounds Thursday night, as the Aggies repelled a third-quarter Anteater run to hand UC Irvine a, 76-67, defeat at the Bren Events Center.

The Aggies improved to 11-3 overall and 1-0 in league play, returning home to host Hawai'i on Saturday (Jan. 6) at 2 p.m. at The Pavilion. The Anteaters, led by 19 points from Yazzy Sa'Dullah, fell to 8-7 overall and 0-1 in conference.

Bertsch finished 8-of-13 from the field and added three rebounds, while Gianotti was 6-of-10 from the floor, grabbing a game-high nine rebounds and adding three assists in the win.

After leading by as many as 14 points midway through the second quarter, UC Davis carried a 13-point, 43-30, advantage into the locker room at the break, only to watch the Anteaters rally with a huge third quarter. UC Irvine scored the first six points of the third and outscored the Aggies, 18-4, in the period, holding UC Davis to just 2-of-8 from the floor and leading by one, 48-47, after three.

That's when UC Davis found its rhythm once again as Kourtney Eaton drained a three-pointer on the Aggies' first possession and Marly Anderson scored inside to start the final period, regaining the lead at 52-48 just a minute in.

The teams went back-and-forth until three free throws by Sabrina Engelstad put UC Irvine up two, 56-54, with 6:54 to play. Up stepped Gianotti, who drained her only two three-pointers of the night on back-to-back trips with six minutes to play, sparking a 15-3 run to give the Aggies a lead they would not relinquish.

A three-point play by Bertsch following a Sa'Dullah trey gave UC Davis some breathing room after UCI closed to within a point, and the Aggies led by as many as 10 points on two occasions down the stretch en route to the victory.

UC Davis shot 55 percent from the floor -- including a 69 percent clip in the fourth quarter -- while the defense held the Anteaters to just 33 percent.

UC DAVIS 76, UC IRVINE 67

UC DAVIS (11-3, 1-0 BWC)
Bertsch, Morgan 8-13 3-5 19; Gianotti, Pele 6-10 1-1 15; Bessolo, Nina 2-5 2-2 8; Nagel, Rachel 3-7 0-0 8; Hall, Cierra 4-6 0-0 8; Eaton, Kourtney 2-3 2-2 8; Nafekh, Dani 2-5 1-1 6; Anderson, Marly 2-3 0-0 4; Eaton, Karley 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-53 9-11 76.

UC IRVINE (8-7, 0-1 BWC)
Sa'Dullah, Yazzy 5-12 5-6 19; Green, Morgan 5-21 0-0 12; Saiki, Lauren 3-11 2-2 10; Engelstad, Sabrina 3-5 3-6 9; Garza, Tahlia 4-6 0-0 8; Baumgartner, Autumn 2-3 0-0 4; Ritter, Andee 1-8 0-0 2; Talbert, Haleigh 1-2 0-0 2; Blanks, Deijah 0-2 1-1 1; Guglielmo, Dani 0-1 0-0 0; Seaton, Alexus 0-0 0-0 0; Bayman, Brooke 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 24-73 11-15 67.

UC Davis...................... 22 21 4 29 - 76
UC Irvine..................... 16 14 18 19 - 67

3-point goals--UC Davis 9-20 (Gianotti, Pele 2-5; Nagel, Rachel 2-4; Bessolo, Nina 2-4; Eaton, Kourtney 2-2; Nafekh, Dani 1-4; Eaton, Karley 0-1), UC Irvine 8-30 (Sa'Dullah, Yazzy 4-6; Saiki, Lauren 2-4; Green, Morgan 2-12; Baumgartner, Autumn 0-1; Ritter, Andee 0-4; Talbert, Haleigh 0-1; Blanks, Deijah 0-1; Guglielmo, Dani 0-1). Fouled out--UC Davis-None, UC Irvine-None. Rebounds-UC Davis 38 (Gianotti, Pele 9), UC Irvine 39 (Engelstad, Sabrina 6; Sa'Dullah, Yazzy 6; Garza, Tahlia 6; Ritter, Andee 6). Assists--UC Davis 19 (Eaton, Kourtney 6), UC Irvine 8 (Garza, Tahlia 2; Green, Morgan 2; Baumgartner, Autumn 2). Total fouls--UC Davis 15, UC Irvine 17. Technical fouls--UC Davis-None, UC Irvine-None. A-474