BAKERSFIELD, Calif.—What a way to end 2018. The UC Riverside Women's Basketball team got a 79-67 win vs. CSU Bakersfield on Monday in its final non-conference game, marking the Highlanders' second straight win and their highest scoring game of the season.
"I think that these last two games are very important in terms of our thought process," head coach John Margaritis said. "We wanted to go into Big West play believing that we have a chance to compete. The way we have done that as of late allows us to stay positive."
UCR (6-8) came out on fire in the first quarter, beginning with an 8-2 lead and stretching it to 13-2 with five minutes left in the quarter. All five starters scored and the team shot 66.7 percent from the field to take a 20-11 lead into the second quarter.
The team cooled off in the second quarter, outscored 15-7 at one point, but it still shot 45 percent (9-for-20) from the field and went into halftime with a 41-33 lead.
On the same day that she was named Big West Player of the Week, Jannon Otto scored 12 points in the first half and 21 overall to go along with 14 rebounds. In the last two games, Otto has combined to score 44 points and gone 16-for-17 from the free throw line.
Otto wasn't alone in finding offensive success. Five other Highlanders scored in double digits, including: Marina Ewodo, Daphne Gnago, Tianna Eaton and Keilanei Cooper.
"I thought our ability to make good judgments and quick decisions played a huge role in today's win," said Margaritis.
The Roadrunners made a push in the third quarter and cut the team's lead to 51-50, but UCR answered and went on an 8-2 run to get some breathing room and a 59-52 lead.
"We fought throughout the game to combat their speed and ability to score quickly and get easy baskets," said Margaritis.
The Highlanders took advantage of the Roadrunners' mistakes, scoring 21 points off of turnovers, and outscored them 48-28 on points in the paint. That counteracted the disparity of three point field goals made. UCR went 0-for-3, while CSU Bakersfield went 9-for-20.
UCR begins Big West Conference play on Jan. 5 vs. UC Davis at the SRC Arena.
