Irvine, Calif. – UC Irvine took control in the second half and defeated Sacramento State, 81-75 in a non-conference game at the Bren Center Sunday afternoon.
UC Irvine wins its third consecutive game and goes to 4-5 overall. Sacramento State is 4-6 on the year.
Sacramento State led by 11 (59-48) with 15:30 remaining in the game before UC Irvine out-scored the Hornets, 17-2 to take a 65-61 advantage at 7:47. Sacramento State closed to 71-69 on a layup by Fantasia Hilliard with 3:54 left, but UCI put the cushion back to six (73-69) on a pair of Kassandra McCalister free throws and a layup by Jazmyne White. UCI would not relinquish the lead as the Anteaters made 6 of 8 free throws in the last 1:20 to secure the victory.
Senior guard Kassandra McCalister led all players with 26 points, going 7-12 from the floor and 10-15 from the free throw line. Junior forward Jazmyne White recorded her second double-double of the year with 12 points and a season-high 11 rebounds. White also added three steals and a block. Junior guard Anete Klintsone recorded 12 points, four assists and two steals off the bench. Freshman forward Methlyn Onogomuho added nine points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals, while senior guard Kiara Belen and sophomore forward Pernilla Hanson each pitched in six points.
The Anteaters totaled 14 steals, including eight in the second half and scored 12 fast break points. UCI recorded 29 points off 26 Sacramento State turnovers. For the game, UCI shot 43.1 percent (28-65), while Sacramento State shot 41 percent (32-78). UCI was 21-31 from the line (67.7%), while the Hornets made just nine trips to the charity stripe, hitting six of them (66.7%). Sacramento State held a 50-40 advantage in rebounding.
Sacramento State was paced by Kylie Kuhns and Fantasia Hilliard with 18 points each. Kuhns recorded a double-double with a season-high 17 rebounds. Emily Christensen added 12 points in the loss.
UCI lead 16-10 with 15:05 remaining in the first half before the Hornets scored 15 unanswered in an 18-2 run and opened a lead 28-18 at 11:19. McCalister and Onogomuho each scored four points as the Anteaters rallied to narrow the deficit to 28-26 with 10:07. Sacramento State would build back an eight point lead (42-34) at 3:17, but UC Irvine closed out the half on an 8-1 run to go in to halftime trailing 43-42.
UCI will host San Diego State Friday (Dec. 16) at 7:00 p.m. in the Bren Events Center.
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