Tianna Eaton's Last-Second Shot Propels Women's Basketball to Win vs. UC Irvine

Saturday, February 23

Irvine, CA

7:00 P.M.

UC Riverside

15-12

UC Irvine

17-7

Team	1	2	3	4	F
UC Riverside	16	24	12	14	66
UC Irvine	15	22	19	9	65

Photo by: Carlos Puma

Tianna Eaton's Last-Second Shot Propels Women's Basketball to Win vs. UC Irvine

2/23/2019 11:38:00 PM | Women's Basketball

Box Score

IRVINE, Calif.—As the ball left Tianna Eaton's hand with six seconds left in Saturday's game against UC Irvine, all she could think about was how long the ball was up in the air.

Yet, once the ball went through the hoop, Eaton couldn't contain her excitement and neither could her teammates. She'd just made a three-pointer right next to UC Riverside's bench with four seconds left to give the team a 66-64 lead and an eventual 66-65 win.

"It felt like slow motion," Eaton said. "It is surreal. I still can't believe it happened."

Eaton, who played in her first game since breaking her left foot against UC Davis on Jan. 5., played a total of 12:13 minutes and had taken just one shot before the game-winner.

"Because of her athleticism, she's the kind of person that can just focus," head coach John Margaritis said. "She's not scared. She has ice in her veins."

This game was more than your average conference contest for the UC Riverside Women's Basketball team. The squads came in with the same conference record (7-4) and the winner would go into a tie for second place with CSUN.

It was a back and forth battle with the biggest lead for both teams reaching no more than six points. In total, the game had 10 ties and 17 lead changes.

It was an eventful week of competition for the Highlanders, who won a double-overtime thriller on Thursday at Cal Poly. With another week of play under their belt, the Highlanders improved to 14-12.

Jordan Sanders didn't play in the first matchup between the teams on Jan. 17, in which UCR got a 88-72 win. With her in the lineup this time, the boost was obvious. She went 7-for-8 from the field in the first half with 15 points. Overall, she tallied 24 points, but went just 2-for-11 in the second half.

One of her biggest misses came at the free throw line with three seconds left. After Eaton gave the Highlanders a two-point lead, she fouled Sanders with three seconds left and put her at the line for two free throws. She missed the first one and then made the second.

Another impact player in Saturday's game was Daphne Gnago. The redshirt freshman scored a season-high 17 points and battled for 12 rebounds (four offensive).

With four conference games left, UCR will now face CSUN on Thursday at 7 pm. at the SRC Arena. The winner will move into sole possession of second place.

"They are at a place now where I can push them in a different way," Margaritis said. "Now, they are hungry for something they didn't know existed. Now it is creeping up and they can see it."