PHOENIX, Ariz. - Behind double-doubles from sophomore Jordan Sanders and junior Lauren Saiki, the UC Irvine women's basketball team toppled Indiana State, 77-61, to claim the GCU Thanksgiving Classic title Saturday afternoon at GCU Arena.
 
The Anteaters went 2-0 in the tournament and improved to 5-0 on the season, marking their best start in program history. UCI handed Indiana State its first loss as the Sycamores dropped to 3-1 overall.
 
"I'm really impressed with our back-to-back play today; we came in with less than 24 hours rest and started strong from the tip," head coach Tamara Inoue said. "I'm very happy with Jordan getting a double-double, but who really impressed me today was Lauren. She had 13 assists and only one turnover, and got a double-double as well, scoring 10 points. Her leadership and point guard play was phenomenal, and we expect that from her every game.
 
"Overall, It was a team win as we had four people reach double digits again. We have to stay consistent in every quarter and I thought we did a much better job of doing that today."
 
Sanders recorded a career-high 25 points (11-16 FG) to go along with 11 rebounds and four steals. It was her second double-double of the year and fourth in her young career.
 
Saiki notched her first double-double as an 'Eater, finishing with 10 points and a career-best 13 assists. Her 13 assists rank third in single-game program history and were the most by a UCI player since Raelyn Cheung-Sutton dished out 12 vs. UC Davis on March 5, 2016.
 
Senior Sabrina Engelstad added 16 points (7-10 FG) and nine rebounds, while senior Andee Ritter had 12 points on four triples. Ritter added four steals.
 
Sophomore Haleigh Talbert contributed five points and four steals, and classmate Tahlia Garza chipped in four points, six rebounds and two blocks.
 
The Anteaters, who had 16 steals, forced 23 turnovers and converted 27 points off those miscues. They shot 47.8 percent from the field with 21 assists on 32 made field goals.
 
Engelstad and Sanders combined for seven early points to help UC Irvine take an 8-2 lead at the 6:24 mark. Indiana State closed the gap to one before the Anteaters scored six unanswered to pull ahead, 14-7, with 2:12 remaining. The Sycamores then responded with a 9-2 run down the stretch to cut UCI's lead to 16-15 at the end of the first quarter.
 
The 'Eaters made the adjustments during the short break as they held ISU scoreless over the first four minutes of the second period. They took advantage on the offensive end where they netted 14-straight points, and extended that into a 20-3 run to go on top, 36-18, at the 2:39 mark. Indiana State came back with a 7-0 spurt, but Sanders ended the rally with a three-point play that put UC Irvine up, 39-25, at the half.
 
UCI kept the momentum in the third frame, increasing its lead to 51-29 on a 3-pointer from Ritter at the 4:10 mark. The Anteaters stayed out front and found themselves up by 22 again with 1:38 to go before the Sycamores accounted for the final five points to get the 'Eater lead under 20 (59-42).
 
UC Irvine kept its steady play in the final stanza as the Anteaters were up by at least 13 the rest of the way.
 
Ashli O'Neal paced Indiana State with 17 points, eight rebounds and four steals. Alexis Delgado added 11 points on three treys, all of which came in the first quarter. The Sycamores shot 35.5 percent from the field.
 
UC Irvine returns to the friendly confines of the Bren Events Center next week when it plays host to future Big West member Cal State Bakersfield on Thursday, Nov. 29. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
 
NOTES
• UC Irvine went undefeated at a preseason tournament for the first time since 1995-96.
• The team improved to 5-0 for the first time in program history.
• The Anteaters have forced 23 or more turnovers in every game this year.
• UCI's 21 assists were a season high against NCAA Division I opponents.
• The 'Eaters improved to 17-3 when Jordan Sanders scores 10+ points and are now 5-0 when she scores 20 or more.
• Lauren Saiki notched her first career double-digit assist game.
• She is the first Anteater to record 10+ assists since Brooke Bayman on Jan. 19, 2017.
• Saiki has scored 10+ points in three consecutive outings.
• Andee Ritter has made a 3-pointer in 16-straight games.
• She has knocked down 157 career threes, and needs 42 more to break UCI's all-time record.
• Ritter also has multiple steals in every game this year and registered four takeaways in each of the last three contests.