IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's basketball team saw another game get away from them in the fourth quarter as Long Beach State outscored the Anteaters by nine over the final 10 minutes for a 56-46 Black & Blue Rivalry win Saturday afternoon at the Bren Events Center.
 
Despite trailing for 33 minutes, the 'Eaters were right in it until hitting a wall in the final period. After taking a three-point lead midway through the third, UCI fell behind by one at the end of the frame. The home team was then held to just six points on one field goal and three free throws in the fourth quarter.
 
BY THE NUMBERS: Junior Haleigh Talbert finished with a game-high 15 points to go along with four rebounds, three steals and two assists. Senior Lauren Saiki also reached double figures with 12 points (4-7 3FG). Saiki added six assists and a career-best six steals. Freshman Sophia Locandro chipped in seven points and seven boards.
 
Jasmine Hardy was LBSU's leading scorer with 13 points, while Lauren Green pulled down 10 rebounds.
 
The Anteaters forced the Beach into 26 turnovers and turned those miscues into 21 points. But, UCI shot just 30% from the field after going 1-for-14 in the fourth quarter. The 'Eaters were also outrebounded, 48-24.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: It went back-and-forth over the first few minutes before Long Beach State broke a 5-5 deadlock with a 9-0 rally. UC Irvine came right back with five-straight points from Talbert to close the gap to 14-10 with 1:48 to play, but the Beach finished the first quarter strong, taking an 18-10 lead.
 
LBSU (9-10, 4-2 Big West) pulled ahead by 10 to start the second period when a triple from Talbert sparked a 6-0 Anteater spurt that cut the deficit to four at the 7:44 mark. The 'Eaters kept the momentum as they continued on a 15-5 run to knot the score at 25-25 on a Talbert layup with 2:15 remaining in the half. Long Beach State would reclaim the lead over the next couple minutes, however, as the visitors held a 27-25 edge at intermission.
 
The two teams entered a seesaw battle in the third frame, trading buckets over the first four minutes. After the Beach went on top, 34-31, UCI scored six unanswered points, capped by a Joy Akaegbu-Cleveland jumper, to take a 37-34 lead with 3:50 to go. LBSU responded with a 7-0 run of its own, but Saiki ended a three-minute scoring drought for UC Irvine with a trey to make it 41-40.
 
The Anteaters then went cold in the fourth, falling behind 47-40. Saiki eventually got the 'Eaters back on the board with a 3-pointer at the 4:15 mark, but that would stand as their only field goal in the quarter as Long Beach State ran away with the 56-46 victory.
 
UP NEXT: UC Irvine begins a tough Big West road stretch next week at Hawai'i on Thursday, Jan. 30. The Anteaters then return to the mainland for another away game at UC Riverside (Feb. 1).
 
NOTES
• For the second-straight game, UC Irvine allowed a season-low 56 points against NCAA Division I opponents.
• The Anteaters also scored a season low for the second game in a row.
• It marked the first time all year they were held to fewer than 50 points.
• Haleigh Talbert secured her sixth-straight double-figure scoring game with 8:55 left in the second quarter.
• Lauren Saiki is the second 'Eater to record six steals in a game this season, joining Chloe Webb who did it against Westcliff on Jan. 6.
• Sophia Locandro led UCI on the boards for the sixth consecutive outing.