Box Score - UC Riverside 53, Cal State Fullerton 51
Riverside, CA - Alyssa Morris (pictured) hit a jumper with two seconds remaining that proved to be the game winner for the UC Riverside women's basketball team as they withstood a late Titan rally to take home the 53-51 victory over Cal State Fullerton at the Student Recreation Center in Big West Conference action.
The Highlanders improve to 7-3 in conference play and 10-13 overall while Cal State Fullerton drops to 5-5 in Big West play and 10-13 overall. UCR has now won the last three straight and seven of the last eight.
UCR was down by two, 51-49, after Britt Peters' layup gave the Titans the lead with just under a minute to play. Rheya Neabors was then fouled with 0:39 seconds to go and made both free throws the tie the game.
After a turnover by Fullerton with 13 seconds left, Morris dribbled down court and entered the lane and hit a fade-away jumper that proved to be the game winning shot. The Titans' heave with a second remaining was off the mark as the Highlanders held on for the win.
Morris led all scores with 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting including 1-of-1 from three-point range and 2-of-2 from the free throw line. She also tied her career-high with 10 rebounds, accumulating her second double-double of her career.
In the first half, both teams were cold out of the gate as there was a combined five points scored through the first seven minutes of play. CSF would eventually go on to take a 15-9 lead at the 6:19 mark, but UCR went on a 10-0 run to take a 16-15 advantage two minutes later as they entered the half up 23-22.
In the second period, the Highlanders maintained the lead through 19 minutes of play, even taking a nine-point advantage, 45-36, with 7:52 to go. From that point on, however, the Titans slowly chipped at UCR's lead and rallied for a 15-4 run to take a 51-49 lead with under a minute to play before Neabors two free throws and Morris' jumper.
The Highlanders hit just 36.8 percent of their shots for the game, but Cal State Fullerton was worse, hitting 29.3 percent of their field goals.
UC Riverside returns to action at UC Santa Barbara on Thursday, Feb. 11 at 7:00 pm.