IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's basketball team continued its winning ways Thursday with a 56-45 Senior Night victory over UC Riverside at the Bren Events Center.
 
The Anteaters (23-5, 15-2 Big West), who set a school record in overall wins last Saturday, picked up their program-best 15th conference victory.
 
On Senior Night, graduate student Nyagoa Gony had her best all-around game of the year with a season-high eight points (4-5 FG) to go along with seven rebounds and four blocks.
 
"Nyagoa has been able to really help us on the defensive side," said head coach Tamara Inoue. "You're always looking for that length so we knew we could use her in our program."
 
The 'Eaters honored both Gony and Naomi Hunt in a postgame senior ceremony. Hunt, who suffered a season-ending injury on Dec. 31, has been a key member of the program over the last two years.
 
"Naomi is special; when you're trying to build a culture the right way, you want players like her who will buy into the program, be present and really care about what we do here at Irvine," said Inoue. "She's proud to wear the UCI name and I am so happy to have her as an Anteater."
 
BY THE NUMBERS: Sophomore Déja Lee finished with a team-high 11 points, while adding four rebounds and four assists. Junior Diaba Konate also had 10 points and a game-high five assists.
 
Junior Nevaeh Dean added nine points, five boards and a career-best four dimes, while Gony had eight points, seven rebounds and four blocks. Sophomore Nikki Tom chipped in seven points, and junior Nevaeh Parkinson had six points and a game-high tying nine rebounds.
 
UCI shot 39.7% from the floor while holding UCR to 32.7%. The Anteaters also won the battle in rebounding (40-34) and turnovers forced (16-14), while finishing with 16 assists on 23 made field goals.
 
Jordan Webster led the Highlanders with 21 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: UC Riverside (5-24, 3-16 Big West) got the scoring started before UC Irvine went on a 9-0 run to go up by seven at the 5:23 mark. The Highlanders closed the gap to one following six-straight points from Webster, but the Anteaters stayed out front, taking a 15-11 lead at the end of the first quarter.
 
The two teams exchanged buckets over the first two minutes of the second period. Tom then drained a 3-pointer with 6:04 remaining to put the 'Eaters on top, 20-15. UCR would end a two-and-a-half-minute drought for both sides, but UCI got hot late, scoring 11 unanswered to close out the half with a 14-point advantage (31-17).
 
UC Irvine used an 8-3 spurt, capped by an Amelia Scharpf 3-pointer just before the midway point of the third frame to take its largest lead of the night at 41-23 with 5:35 remaining. UC Riverside responded with an 8-0 rally, but the Anteaters maintained their double-digit lead as Lee knocked down a triple to make it 44-31 at the 1:56 mark. It went back-and-forth the rest of the way as a putback from Dean with 49 seconds left gave the 'Eaters a 48-35 cushion.
 
The Highlanders cut the deficit to 49-40 on a Webster triple with 5:15 to play in the fourth, but a Parkinson layup followed by a three from Dean put UCI back up by 14.
 
UP NEXT: UC Irvine travels to CSU Bakersfield for its regular-season finale on Saturday, March 4. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.
 
NOTES
• UC Irvine has set program records in both overall wins (23) and conference wins (15) this season.
• UCI completed its fifth regular-season series sweep of the 2023 Big West campaign.
• The Anteaters (15-2) are second in the conference standings behind Long Beach State (17-2).
• With a win and an LBSU loss on Saturday, the 'Eaters would claim the program's first Big West regular-season title.
• UC Irvine, which entered tonight ranked 10th in the nation in scoring defense, allowed fewer than 60 points for the 22nd time this year.
• Nyagoa Gony had her 10th outing with multiple blocks.
• Over the last five games, Diaba Konate is averaging 5.0 assists.
• Nikki Tom has made a 3-pointer in each of the last 10 contests.
• Laila El Behery, a member of the UCI soccer team, saw her first action on the basketball court after joining the squad last week.