Box Score
Box score

LA JOLLA, Calif. – Facing its toughest test of the season so far, the Cal State East Bay women's basketball team responded, hanging with No. 2 UC San Diego throughout an eventual 84-73 loss at RIMAC Arena on Friday night. Despite the loss, the Pioneers (5-9, 2-6 CCAA) had their best shooting night of the season while out-shooting the Tritons (15-0, 9-0) at the free-throw line and going toe-to-toe with them on the glass. 

“It took us some time to start believing in ourselves, but then we competed well,” Head Coach Suzy Barcomb said. “We played together, we shared the ball and we played as a team. It wasn't a win but I'm very happy with our effort level tonight.”

Four players scored in double figures for Cal State East Bay, led by Micah Walker, Cassie Coble and Sarah Finlay, who each contributed 12 points. Both Finlay and Coble scored their points off the bench, with Finlay going 6-for-10 from the field and Coble finishing the game a perfect 8-for-8 from the free-throw line. Junior Marlene MacMillan joined the trio in double digits with 11 points and added a team-high three assists and three blocks. Lauren Lucchesi and Brianna Terrance also chipped in, scoring nine and seven points, respectively.

The Pioneers out-rebounded the Tritons, 31-30, thanks to MacMillan and Coble's team-leading five rebounds apiece. Meanwhile Walker, Hege Blikra and Nia Bravo added three boards apiece for East Bay. Overall, the Pioneers finished shooting 50.9 percent from the field, a new season high, and went 14-for-19 from the charity stripe. East Bay also got 33 points from its non-starters, besting the Tritons' bench by 26 points.

“Our bench was very productive once again tonight,” Barcomb said. “That allowed us to manage our minutes much more effectively.”

Each of UC San Diego's five starters recorded double-digit points, led by Chelsea Carlisle and Lauren Friedenberg's 20 points each. Friedenberg also led the Tritons' rebounding efforts with eight boards on the night, while Carlisle posted 12 assists. Though the Pioneers knocked down half of their shots, UCSD was even better from the field, shooting 55 percent from the field, including a 6-for-16 performance from three-point range.

“UCSD is such a quality team,” Barcomb said. “They are very deserving of their ranking. The starting five has tremendous talent.”

East Bay jumped out to an early lead in the first half, opening scoring with back-to-back buckets from MacMillan and Blikra to take a 4-0 lead. The Pioneers held onto the advantage, pushing the lead to 10-8 with 15:10 left to play. The Tritons responded and took hold of the lead for the first time with a 16-4 run that spanned nearly seven minutes. Trailing 24-14, East Bay converted a steal by Lucchesi into a layup from Walker to spark an 11-4 run of its own that would cut the UCSD lead down to just three points. The run saw Walker score nine points and UCSD commit two turnovers over the course of five minutes. Leading by just three, the Tritons pulled back momentum and held onto it to end the half, holding the Pioneers scoreless over the final five minutes and scoring 17 unanswered points to take a 42-25 advantage into the break.

Though it got off to a slow start, UC San Diego made up for it late in the first half, shooting 60 percent from the field while the Pioneers shot 39.3 percent in the first frame. Neither team shot well from beyond the arc in the first half, with the Pioneers hitting just one of its six attempts from long range, while the Tritons went 1-for-5 from downtown.

The Tritons led by double digits throughout most of the second half, but the Pioneers answered nearly every basket, keeping UCSD's lead under 20 and setting themselves up for a late comeback push. Down by 17, 77-60, with under five minutes to play, East Bay took advantage of four trips to the line and the hot-shooting hand to kick start a 12-3 run. The four-minute run saw Coble knock down all four of her foul shots and score six points, getting help from Finlay, who scored scored four during the run that cut the advantage to eight points, 80-72, with just under a minute to play. The eight points were too much against the Tritons, though, as they held East Bay to just one more point and rebuilt an 11-point lead to seal the win.

Both teams shot the lights out in the second half, with the Pioneers posting their best shooting half of the season, knocking down 63 percent of its shots from the field in the final 20 minutes. East Bay also found success at the free-throw line, converting on 12 of its 15 trips to the charity stripe. UCSD was equally successful, going 15-for-30 from the field but hitting 45.5 percent of its three-point shots.

Cal State East Bay returns to action on Saturday night when it travels to Cal State San Bernardino. The Pioneers and Coyotes are set for a 5:30 p.m. tip at Coussoulis Arena.