UCRWBB-Cooper
Gary Breedlove
76
UC Riverside UCR 8-21,4-11 Big West
86
Winner UC Irvine Irvine 12-17,8-7 Big West
UC Riverside UCR
8-21,4-11 Big West
76
Final
86
UC Irvine Irvine
12-17,8-7 Big West
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
UC Riverside UCR 21 8 13 34 76
UC Irvine Irvine 19 23 16 28 86

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Highlanders Fight To The End In, 86-76, Loss At UC Irvine

Presented By Altura Credit Union

Altura Credit Union

Irvine, Calif.- The UC Riverside Women's Basketball team nearly overcame a double-digit first half deficit with a fourth rally Thursday night, but UC Irvine held on for the 86-76 victory. 

UC Riverside (8-21, 4-11) got double-figures from four different players for the first time in conference play this season. Keilanei Cooper led the way with 20 points on 7-14 shooting including three connects from long distance. Daphne Gnago added 15 points to go with her seven rebounds and three steals, both game highs. 

Jannon Otto shook off an 0-8 start to finish with 11 points. She dished out six assists and pulled down five boards. Freshman shooting guard Georgia Ohiaeri poured in a career-high 10 points, which included a pair of three-pointers.

"I'm proud of the fight we showed tonight. We got down double-digits and fought hard to get back in the game.said Head Coach Seyram Bell.

UC Irvine (12-17, 8-7) trailed the Highlanders, 21-19, at the end of the first quarter, before the Highlanders went cold in the second. They shot 3-16 (18.8%) from the field and 1-5 at the free-throw line. Conversely, the 'Eaters went 9-16 (58.3%) in the second frame en route to building a 42-29 advantage at the break. 

UCR trailed 58-42 heading into the fourth, when Keilanei Cooper erupted for 14 of her team-high 20 points. Midway through the quarter Cooper scored nine straight points, including a four-point play, in the midst of an 11-5 run that cut the UC Irvine lead to nine, 78-69. The clubs traded scores in the final minutes of play before time ran out for the Highlanders. 

With the loss, UC Riverside is officially eliminated from next week's Big West Conference Tournament. 

Looking Forward
The Highlanders will celebrate their four seniors, Jalyn Clay, Marina Ewodo, Jannon Otto and Skyler Lewis at the conclusion of Saturday's season finale versus CSUN, which is slated for a  3pm tip-off in the SRC Arena.