DAVIS, Calif. -- UC Davis nearly erased a 24-point deficit but saw its comeback bid come up just short in its 71-62 defeat to Portland State on Thursday night inside the University Credit Union Center.
The Aggies (1-1) had four players score in double figures, led by Evanne Turner, who had 14 points. Megan Norris tacked on 12 points and six rebounds and Tova Sabel helped out with 11 points and seven rebounds.
UC Davis took advantage of great ball movement in Thursday's game, piling up 16 assists on 24 made field goals. Individually, Sydney Burns lent a helping hand the most for the Aggies with eight assists.
UC Davis forced 19 Portland State turnovers while committing 17 themselves in Thursday's game. The Aggies turned those takeaways into 16 points on the offensive end of the floor.
How It Happened
It was a slow start for UC Davis, opening the game with three straight turnovers. However, the Aggies' defense was strong as they forced three turnovers of their own, with the last of three leading to a Burns layup in transition.
Norris would pace the offense in the early minutes with back-to-back buckets in the paint. It would be the visitors to make the most of their hot start in the first 10 minutes, going 10-of-15 (66.7%) to take an early 22-12 lead.
Nya Epps opened the second quarter scoring by banking in a three-pointer from deep before Evanne Turner knocked down a three of her own to cut the deficit to six. The Vikings would start to take full control of the contest when they sparked a 17-2 run while Davis' team endured a scoring drought of over six minutes. This resulted in a 41-20 halftime lead in favor of Portland State as the Vikings out-scored the Aggies 19-8 in the period.
Turner buried back-to-back three-balls to get UC Davis started after the second-half tip-off, immediately forcing a timeout from Portland State. Sabel started to catch fire in the third quarter by hitting two threes in her 10-point display that sparked a 12-0 run for the Ags. Coming up with a huge basket was Lena Svanholm, who finished off a tough layup with some contact to whittle the lead to single digits. The Denmark native was a perfect 4-for-4 from the floor with nine points in the third period.
With seconds remaining in the quarter, Turner nailed her third three-pointer and UC Davis would find itself down by nine with 10 minutes left to play.
Victoria Baker's pull-up jumper got the Aggies on the board in the fourth, but then the hosts would endure a four-minute stretch without a field goal. However, it was Baker who ended the scoring drought by finding the bottom of the net from three point range, cutting the lead to seven with just under three minutes left in the contest.
UC Davis continued to make in interesting when Norris' back-to-back baskets made it a four-point game with 52 seconds remaining. On Portland State' next possession, Esmeralda Morales made a big three-pointer to end the Aggies' hopes of a comeback and the Vikings would come away with the 71-62 victory.
Game Notes
» UC Davis found success from beyond the arc, knocking down eight treys in the game.
» The Aggies put on a passing clinic, recording an assist on 67 percent of made field goals.
» The UC Davis bench came alive by scoring 19 points to its scoring output.
» The UC Davis defense forced 19 turnovers.
» UC Davis cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 11 offensive boards in the game.
» Evanne Turner led the Aggies with 14 points.
» UC Davis got a team-high seven rebounds from Tova Sabel.
UP NEXT
The Ags hit the road to take on San Diego State on Nov. 13. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.
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