RIVERSIDE, Calif. — A 53% shooting day from UC Davis women's basketball powered the team to an 81-68 win over UC Riverside on Saturday, Jan. 24.
Score: UC Davis 81, UC Riverside 68
Location: Riverside, Calif. (SRC Arena)
Records: UC Davis 14-6 (7-2), UC Riverside 6-13 (4-5)
OPENING TIP
- Megan Norris led the way with 21 points and 12 rebounds. This contest was her second straight with 20+ points, and it's her fourth straight double-double, her 13th of the season.
- Avery Sussex also went for 21 points, her fourth time this year with 20 or more points in a game. Achieving the mark on four made three pointers.
- Ryann Bennett and Nya Epps rounded out the double-digit scorers with 12 and 10, respectively. Each player also had seven rebounds, and Bennett led the team with six assists.
- The Aggies dominated in the paint throughout the day, scoring 38 points down low compared to 26 from their opponent.
- A 50-point first half marked the first time the team has achieved that mark since going for 53 in the first half against Cal Maritime last season.
- Through the first three quarters of action, UC Davis was 26-41 (63.4%) from the field. They finished the day shooting 53.7% from the field, the fourth time this season they've shot 50%+ from the field.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- A 10-0 scoring run started the day for the Aggies, with Sussex, Epps, and Tegan Young putting their team up double-digits four minutes into the game.
- The Highlanders would look to capitalize on layups from their top scorers, but Davis would keep its foot on the gas, using six treys to jump out to a 26-10 lead after one.
- The scoring barrage continued in the second quarter, as the Aggies would respond to each Highlander basket with one of their own, holding a 38-17 advantage halfway through the period.
- Coming off the bench, Sophie Lentfer would get her first points of the afternoon before seeing her team use a litany of free throws to go into halftime up 50-26.
- Out of the locker room, the road team looked to pull away on an 8-0 run that featured three straight buckets from Emmy Ersdala.
- But Riverside refused to bow down, scoring seven of 11 to try and fire up momentum with three minutes left in the period.
- Despite the run from their opponent, the Aggies closed things out on a mini run of their own, scoring five of seven to enter the final quarter of action up 71-42.
- After a 5-0 start to the fourth by the Highlanders, Lentfer got another layup to break up the scoring run.
- A pair of three pointers from Sussex and a layup from Norris led the way in the final 10 minutes, as the Aggies would hold off a late Highlander rally to win 81-68.
UP NEXT: After a two-week road trip, the Aggies return home next week for a pair of Big West matchups. The team begins its homestand on Thursday, Jan. 29, against CSUN at 6:00 p.m. PT before wrapping up on Saturday, Jan. 31, against Cal State Bakersfield at 2:00 p.m. PT. Both games will be streaming live on ESPN+ and KDVS 90.3.
ABOUT UC DAVIS ATHLETICS:
UC Davis, the No. 2 ranked public university by the Wall Street Journal, is home to 40,000 undergraduate students and 12,000 employees. Ranked #1 in Agriculture and Forestry as well as #1 in Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis is located in a true California college town nestled between world-class destinations such as the San Francisco Bay Area, Napa Valley and Lake Tahoe. Over 650 Aggie student-athletes compete in 25 Division I varsity sports, with 16 sports transitioning to the Mountain West Conference beginning in 2026–27.
For more information, visit
https://ucdavisaggies.com/.
