IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's basketball team dropped a heartbreaker to Long Beach State, falling 52-50 Saturday afternoon at the Bren Events Center.
 
In a battle for the top spot in the Big West standings, it was the Beach that escaped with the win in the final seconds. The Anteaters (17-5, 9-2 Big West), who led for most of the contest, were up 50-49 with 1:25 remaining. Despite getting a couple stops, UCI was unable to increase its lead and LBSU eventually pulled ahead, 51-50, on a putback with 21.4 ticks on the clock.
 
Long Beach then made it a two-point game, knocking down 1-of-2 at the foul line with just under five seconds remaining. The 'Eaters had one more opportunity but Diaba Konate's driving layup to knot the score rimmed out at the buzzer.
 
"We got what we wanted, we just didn't finish it," said head coach Tamara Inoue. "We can't hang our heads; there's a lot to learn from this game and we will regroup. (Long Beach) is a good team and they did a good job against us. We just have to come back and get ready for Cal Poly."
 
BY THE NUMBERS: Sophomore Hunter Hernandez led all players with 19 points and a career-high 13 rebounds. It was her third double-double of the season.
 
Junior Nevaeh Parkinson added eight points and four boards, while classmate Nevaeh Dean finished with six points. Sophomore Nikki Tom also registered a team-best five steals and three assists.
 
UCI shot 31.5% from the field and went just 2-for-24 from beyond the arc. LBSU closed out the game with a 45.5% clip and made 3-of-12 from deep.
 
The 'Eaters won the battle on the boards, 36-27, and held a lopsided 16-5 advantage in offensive rebounds.
 
Tori Harris paced three Long Beach players in double figures with 15 points.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: Long Beach State (15-7, 10-2 Big West) grabbed the momentum early, pulling ahead 13-2 at the 4:47 mark. The Beach made five of their first six field goal attempts, but went cold after the media timeout as UC Irvine held them scoreless for the rest of the quarter. The Anteaters took advantage with an 11-0 run, capped by an and-one from Hernandez with 0.8 seconds on the clock, knotting it up at 13-all.
 
The 'Eaters continued to roll in the second period, outscoring LBSU, 9-2, over the first three minutes. A 3-pointer from Tom gave UCI a 22-15 lead forcing Long Beach State to burn a timeout. The Beach responded out of the short break, cutting its deficit to two, but UC Irvine finished strong for a 34-24 cushion at the half.
 
A layup from Dean to start the third gave the Anteaters their largest lead at 36-24 before LBSU came storming back with a 10-2 rally making it a two-point game. The 'Eaters were able to stay out front with an Amelia Scharpf putback at the 1:48 mark giving them a 40-36 edge after three.
 
UCI struck first in the fourth frame and the two teams proceeded to trade buckets. After UC Irvine went up 47-41 on a Parkinson layup, Long Beach used an 8-1 spurt to reclaim the lead at 49-48 with 5:51 remaining.
 
Both sides went scoreless over the next four minutes before a putback from Parkinson gave the Anteaters a 50-49 advantage at the 1:25 mark. The Beach then answered with a tip-in of its own with 21.4 seconds to play. That proved to be the game-winner as the shots didn't fall for the 'Eaters down the stretch.
 
UP NEXT: UC Irvine hits the road next week, traveling to Cal Poly (Feb. 9) and UC Riverside (Feb. 11).
 
NOTES
• UC Irvine is now second in the Big West standings, falling a half-game behind Long Beach State.
• The Anteaters were handed just their third loss when holding their opponent to under 60 points (13-3).
• It was also UCI's second home defeat of the year (8-2).
• The 'Eaters, who hosted a National Girls & Women in Sports Day youth clinic before the game, had their third largest home crowd of the season at 921.
• Hunter Hernandez pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds with seven coming on the offensive end.
• Nikki Tom matched her career high with five steals.
• Diaba Konate has made 28 consecutive free throws and is shooting a Big West-leading 93% at the charity stripe.
• Konate has also registered at least one steal in all 19 of her appearances this season.