Reno, NV—The UC Riverside Women's Basketball Team (1-4) fell to SMU (3-3) 73-51 on day one of the Nugget Classic. Forward Skyler Lewis and guard Lauren Holt finished tied for the team-lead with 14 points apiece.
KEY RUNS
The Highlanders led 7-5 midway through the first, but allowed SMU to go on a 19-0 run in just over a four minute span. That gave the Mustangs a 24-7 lead with 1:03 to go in the opening period.
UCR's bench play sparked a small comeback in the second, as the Highlanders went on an 11-0 run to cut the deficit to 31-23 with 3:39 to go in the half. However, that was the closest they would get for the rest of the day.
GAME NOTES
UC Riverside was hurt by a slow start out of the gates, as it shot just 4-of-15 (.267) in the first quarter. Lewis and Holt were a combined 4-of-7 from the field for nine points in the opening period. The Mustangs shot 55.6 percent in the first quarter, taking a 26-12 lead after one.
The Highlanders also struggled to keep SMU off either the glass or the free throw line. The Mustangs enjoyed a 48-30 rebound advantage and finished 19-for-27 (.704) from the line, compared to 6-for-10 (.600) for UCR.
With 14 points, Lewis has scored in double-figures in two consecutive games, and has eight or more rebounds in three straight games, accomplishing both feats for the first time in her career.
Today marked the first game this season that UC Riverside had three double-digit scorers. They were Lewis (14 points), Holt (14 points) and redshirt sophomore guard Jannon Otto (12 points).
Otto shot 6-of-10 from the field for her 12 points, coming up just one point shy of her career-high. She also tied a personal-best with five boards and added three assists and two steals before fouling out.
Sophomore forward Marina Ewodo tied a career-high with three assists and set a new personal-best with three steals off the bench.
UC Riverside tied a season-high with nine steals and had a 14-to-18 advantage in turnovers. It was the second time in five games this season that the Highlanders had fewer turnovers than their opponent.
The Highlanders will close out the Nugget Classic against Sacramento State this Sunday at 11:30 am.
