RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Looking to bounce back following a 74-44 loss to Long Beach (3-1, 2-0) just two days earlier, the UC Riverside Women's Basketball (1-4, 0-2) team staged a ferocious fight throughout the game and a furious rally in the waning minutes of a Tuesday night, December 29, matchup against the Beach, only to fall just shy of victory in 71-66 loss.
In a back and forth contest that would feature 16 lead changes and 12 ties, UCR's stout defensive play, aggressive and attacking offense, and ability to capitalize on turnovers, set the tone for a rebounding UCR squad eager to avenge the earlier loss to the Beach. However, despite four Highlanders scoring in double-digits led by Jordan Webster with 19 points (Keilani Cooper – 13, Jada Holland – 12, Kari Kyrkjebo – 10), the veteran Long Beach squad found a way to hold off the Highlanders in the end.
"Although we are disappointed with the outcome of today's game, we really made a lot of positive strides in how we approached the game and with how we executed today," said Head Coach Nicole Powell. "I'm very proud of this team. We are getting better. Our team has bought in to playing together and doing all the things we ask of them every day. But we have to keep improving and we will. As disappointing as this loss was, we see we have a lot of room for growth and that's what we are focused on."
Throughout the first quarter, the Highlanders' solid defensive effort kept the low-scoring opening quarter close until senior Keilani Cooper drained a three-pointer from the top of the key with 3:20 remaining in the opening stanza to put UCR up 10-7. The teams traded buckets over the next minute with UCR holding a 12-11 lead until Long Beach regained the lead on a three-pointer, 14-12, with just under 1:30 to go in the first quarter. LBSU would close the first quarter out in front, 16-12.
Jordan Webster opened the second quarter nailing the first of her four three-pointers of the day from the corner. Webster's three was immediately followed by Daphne Gnago's (9 points) field goal in the paint, and the Highlanders came roaring back and jumped back in the lead. LBSU would answer, but Webster would once again drain another three from the opposite corner. Cooper followed with a field goal and Webster continued her second quarter scoring spree, adding another field goal and putting the Highlanders up 24-21 with 6:25 left before the half.
Long Beach would answer back yet again. This time in form of an 8-0 run enabling them to leap back in front, 29-24, before a Cooper layup and field goal along with two free throws from teammate Jada Holland, put the lead back in the Highlanders' hands, 30-29. Long Beach would take the lead yet again, 33-30, before Webster would add another long-range three to tie the game at 33.
The first half of the evenly matched contest that featured eight lead changes and six ties, would end with Long Beach holding onto a narrow, two-point margin, 35-33, at the half.
UCR stormed through the third quarter, attacking the basket and continuing their stout defensive play while lead changes and tie scores would continue to be the order of the day. Outscoring Long Beach 19-17 in the third, UCR would close out the quarter deadlocked at 52 with Long Beach.
The fireworks would continue in the fourth quarter, but this time with Long Beach reclaiming the lead on the heels of a 9-0 run over the first two minutes of the fourth, surging ahead 61-52.
Long Beach would push its newfound double-digit lead to 13, 67-54 (the largest margin for either team on the day), with just over five minutes left to play. But UCR would not be denied, fighting back and cutting the Beach's lead to one point, 67-66, with a flurry of counterpunches captured in a 12-0 run of their own.
Held scoreless over several minutes in the final quarter, Long Beach would finally answer their opponent's double-digit run with their first field goal in several minutes, grabbing a 69-66 lead with under a minute to go. The Beach would hold onto that lead throughout the final furious seconds of the game thanks largely in part to a critical steal that thwarted UCR's attempt to set up a game-tying three-point attempt. LBSU would ultimately escape with a 71-66 win.
Originally scheduled to be played yesterday, Monday, December 28, at Long Beach's Walter Pyramid, the game was moved to UCR's SRC Arena due to a building maintenance issue at The Pyramid.
The Highlanders fall to 1-4 on the season (0-2 in Big West Conference play) following the loss to Long Beach while the Beach move to 4-1 on the season (2-0 in the Big West Conference). UCR is scheduled to be back in action on January 8 at the University of Hawaii.
