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2021 Air Force Reserve Big West Women's Basketball Championships, Presented by the Hawaiian Islands Information
 
DAVIS, Calif. – After their five-game win streak ended Friday night, the Aggies (9-7, 6-4 BWC) responded with an impressive performance throughout Saturday's regular season finale at the Pavilion by winning 50/50 balls, frustrating Hawai'i (11-9, 9-9 BWC) with their defensive intensity, working hard underneath the basket all afternoon long and making all the hustle plays, at key moments of the game, to record a 74-66 victory over the Rainbow Warriors.
 
By ending the season with wins in six of its last seven games, UC Davis will head to Las Vegas for next week's Big West Basketball Championships as the event's No. 4 seed and face No. 5 CSU Bakersfield in Thursday's 2 p.m. quarterfinal from the Michelob ULTRA Arena at the Mandalay Bay.
 
"The intensity, physicality and competitiveness, everything outside of basketball, is how we won tonight. We wanted to be more competitive and physical than they were," said Elijah Pepper, who recorded the team's first double-double since January of 2019 — earned by TJ Shorts II at UC Irvine with 21 points and 10 rebounds — by finishing with 14 and 11 against UH.
 
Added Christian Anigwe, who scored a career-high 14 points and was responsible for seven rebounds, "after yesterday's game, Coach Les talked about how they out-worked us on the glass and throughout the whole game. These were the points we focused on today, our physicality and working hard on the glass."
 
From the opening tip, UC Davis owned the paint on both ends of the court; in addition to out-rebounding the Rainbow Warriors 36-22 overall, it collected twice as many offensive rebounds (12-6) and finished with eight more boards defense (24-16). That hard work paid dividends for the Aggies all game long since they scored 46 of their 74 points in the paint, compared to a UH squad that was limited to 18.
 
"Tonight looked a lot more like Aggie basketball. I thought we were the aggressor, were more physical, made the tough plays and worked for our rebounds, which we won by a 36-22 margin. They only made four threes all night and we were able to limit their points in transition," said head coach Jim Les.
 
With pairings set for the league's year-end tournament, UC Davis will look to carry over its success from the final weeks of the season into postseason play — an opportunity every member of the program does not take for granted.
 
Said Pepper, "It is really a blessing to play. We were out for six weeks, or something like that, and we talked among each other and said that if we are able to play, we need to play as if that is our last game. Last year, we finished the season and headed to the tournament thinking we were going to play, but everything was canceled. That is our mentality: Play each game as if it is our last because you never know when the last game will take place."
 
Earlier this season due to Yolo County Health Orders, men's basketball was forced to pause competition for seven weeks and cancel 11 games that were scheduled after its 2020-21 home opener, which took place on Dec. 4. The Aggies did not return to action until Jan. 22 at UC San Diego.
 
Added Anigwe, "When we were unable to compete earlier in the season, we did not know if we would have a chance to step back onto the court. Being here is just a blessing, and it is a blessing that we are about to play and compete in the tournament."
 

 

ABOUT UC DAVIS
Over 700 student-athletes across 25 intercollegiate athletics teams, following the addition of equestrian and women's beach volleyball in 2018, are enrolled in 71 of more than 100 academic programs at the fifth-ranked public school in the nation.
 
Centrally located between San Francisco, Lake Tahoe and the Napa Valley, UC Davis is known nationwide as a leader in Title IX gender equity and leadership, ranks annually in the top 10 in diversity and students' social mobility and offers an unrivaled student-athlete experience that features the ideal combination of elite academics, Division I athletics and personal growth.
 
UC Davis is uncommonly committed to preparing student-athletes for life after graduation with Aggie EVO — an innovative student-athlete outcomes program that helps young women and men develop passions, gain real-world experience, and enjoy a successful launch to full-time employment or graduate school. Through Aggie EVO, Intercollegiate Athletics provides unmatched resources and a vast network of working professionals to ensure post-graduation success for its student-athletes.