IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's basketball team (6-2) put on a show for the 1,101 fans in attendance as they rolled past Westcliff University, 85-37, on their inaugural Kids Day at the Bren Events Center.
 
The Wednesday matinee brought in students from eight local elementary schools, with their energy lifting UCI to the 48-point victory.

The Anteaters, who led wire-to-wire, scored the first 12 points of the game and never looked back. They forced the Warriors into 11 of their 21 turnovers, and tied their season high with 29 points in the first quarter.
 
"We haven't had a start like that all season, so having that type of energy in the Bren definitely got our team going," said head coach Tamara Inoue. "The best thing about Kids Day is the atmosphere and giving the young girls and boys the opportunity to see us play. It's exciting, and the smiles on our student-athletes faces is really what it's all about."
 
BY THE NUMBERS: Sophomore Hunter Hernandez led the 'Eaters with a career-high 20 points and 10 rebounds. She was 7-of-10 from the field and 5-of-5 at the free throw line in 23 minutes played. It was the team's first 20-point effort and first double-double of the season.
 
Sophomore Olivia Williams added 15 points, four rebounds and five assists, while Déja Lee and Nikki Tom finished with 11 points and six assists each. Tom also notched a career-best five steals and Lee pulled down six boards. Junior Caiyle Kaupu chipped in a season-high eight points and four rebounds.
 
As a team, UCI shot a season-best 48.6% (35-72) from the field, 37.5% (6-16) from beyond the arc and 90% (9-10) at the charity stripe. The 'Eaters outrebounded the Warriors, 49-26, and held a lopsided advantage in points off turnovers (31-6), points in the paint (54-12) and second-chance points (18-0).
 
Eva Taylor paced Westcliff with a team-high 11 points.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: UC Irvine forced five turnovers in the first three minutes to race out to a 12-0 lead. Westcliff then got on the board at the 6:13 mark, but the Anteaters proceeded on a 17-2 run the rest of the way for a 29-4 first-quarter lead.
 
UCI kept the momentum in the second period, pulling ahead 36-5 on a pair of free throws from Lee with 5:54 remaining. The Warriors answered with a 6-2 spurt, but Nevaeh Parkinson closed out the frame with a fast-break layup to make it 40-13 at intermission.
 
The 'Eaters continued to roll in the second half where they outscored Westcliff, 45-24. They went up by as many as 49 on a Hernandez layup with 1:34 to go. The Warriors would complete an and-one with 39 seconds on the clock before Nyagoa Gony's layup accounted for the final 85-37 score.
 
UP NEXT: UC Irvine makes the short trip to fellow Big West member Long Beach State for the Beach Classic, Dec. 16-17. The Anteaters will play two neutral-site games, squaring off against Southern Miss on Friday and Dartmouth on Saturday.
 
NOTES
• UC Irvine women's basketball had an attendance of over 1,000 for the first time since 2011.
• The 1,101 fans were the sixth-most in program history.
• UCI has held seven of its eight opponents to at least one single-digit scoring quarter.
• The Anteaters improved to 3-0 at the Bren Events Center this season.
• Dating back to last year, they have won nine-straight home games.
• The 'Eaters have won the battle on the boards in each of their last four outings (+12.0 margin).
• Hunter Hernandez and Nikki Tom both surpassed 200 career points.
• Tom was also the third different Anteater to register five steals in a game this year.
• This was an exhibition game for Westcliff University, which is an NAIA institution.