Bakersfield, CA—The UC Riverside Women's Basketball Team scored the first eight points of the game Saturday afternoon, and led by as many as 18 early in the second half, but CSU Bakersfield went on a 13-2 run midway through the second to close the gap, and converted an old-fashioned three-point play with five ticks remaining to escape with a 66-65 victory.
A pair of Annelise Ito free throws with 3:51 gone in the second helped the Highlanders match their largest lead of the day at 18, 40-22. But the Roadrunners turned up the defensive intensity over the next five minutes causing five UC Riverside turnovers, slicing the lead to seven, 42-35.
The Highlanders pushed their advantage back to double figures on three occasions, the last of which came on a fast-break layup by Dynese Adams with 7:02 on the clock to make it a 55-45 ballgame.
Bakersfield once again turned up the heat as the Highlanders missed four shots and turned the ball over two more times over a two-and-a-half minute stretch. The 'Runners, meanwhile, scored 11 points during that time to cut the lead to one, 57-56.
A CSUB three-point play with 3:17 to go tied the score at 59, and on the Roadrunners next possession, a Batabe Zempare layup gave Bakersfield its first lead of the night.
The teams traded baskets over the next two-plus minutes, and after the Highlanders forced a CSUB turnover with 32 seconds remaining, Ito drew a foul and went to the line with a chance to put UC Riverside up by three. She made the first free throw, but missed the second, and the Roadrunners grabbed the board and went racing down the floor.
Tyonna Outland missed a jumper, but grabbed her own rebound. Her follow-up shot was good though, and Brittany Crain was whistled for a foul on the play. Outland made the freebie to put Bakersfield up one with five seconds remaining.
Simone DeCoud's three pointer at the buzzer was off the mark, and the 'Runners escaped with a one-point victory.
The Highlanders jumped out to their early lead thanks to a stingy defense that forced the Roadrunners into missing 12 of their first 14 shots from the floor. Crain, who was limited to 10 points and six rebounds Thursday night at Fresno State, had eight points and five boards by the second media time out, Saturday.
UC Riverside didn't let up throughout the first half, taking a 29-17 lead into halftime while holding CSU Bakersfield to 18.4 (7 for 38) percent shooting from the field including 0 for 10 from three-point range. Ito nearly recorded a double-double in the first 20 minutes scoring eight points and grabbing 10 rebounds.
The lead might have been greater, but the 'Runners were nearly as efficient as UCR in the defense department, holding the Highlanders to 31.2 percent (10 for 32) shooting overall and 25.0 percent (2 for 8) from beyond the arc.
Crain continued to roll in the second half finishing with a game-high 28 points, 18 of which came after the break. The rest of the team was just five for 20 over that stretch, and the Runners made six of their final nine shots from three-point range to mount their comeback.
Ito finished with 12 points and 10 boards while DeCoud added 10 points. Zempare paced Bakersfield with a 16-point, 16-rebound double-double
The Highlanders remain on the road this Wednesday, traveling to UCLA for a 5 pm PT tip against the Bruins.
