FULLERTON, Calif. - UC Irvine women's basketball recorded its second-straight 20-point win with a dominant 68-44 victory at Cal State Fullerton Thursday evening at Titan Gym.
 
The Anteaters improved to 9-4 overall and 3-0 in Big West play. In their three conference wins, the 'Eaters have outscored their opponents by 20.7 points per game.
 
UCI pulled away toward the end of the second quarter, using a 15-2 run over the final 3:46 to build a 22-point lead. The Anteaters were 14-for-28 from the floor and 5-of-6 from 3-point range in the first 20 minutes. They were also outstanding defensively, holding the Titans to just 14 points, the second fewest they have allowed in a half this season.
 
"For us, it's about getting better every game," said head coach Tamara Inoue. "I don't think our second half was great; I thought we did a decent job of sustaining, but we need to play 40 minutes solid. We're three games in and we have 17 more to go before the tournament; we just have to keep getting better."
 
BY THE NUMBERS: Graduate student Moulayna Johnson Sidi Baba led all scorers with 18 points on a 6-of-8 shooting performance. Junior Déja Lee also had 11 points and senior Diaba Konate added 10 (5-9 FG).
 
Senior Nevaeh Parkinson pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds, including seven on the offensive end. Freshman Shirel Nahum dished out a team-best four assists, while junior Nikki Tom finished with seven points, six boards and three assists. Senior Nevaeh Dean was 3-of-4 from the field for seven points.
 
The 'Eaters shot 44% (26-59) from the field and 58% (7-12) from beyond the arc. They held the Titans to 32% overall and just 6-of-21 from deep. UCI also forced 19 turnovers and won the battle on the boards, 41-35.
 
Gabi Vidmar paced Cal State Fullerton with 14 points and six rebounds.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: UC Irvine took an early 7-2 lead on a Konate layup at the 7:25 mark. Cal State Fullerton cut the deficit to one before the Anteaters outscored the Titans, 6-1, over the final three minutes of the first quarter to pull ahead, 14-8.  
 
Both teams went scoreless over the first four minutes of the second period. Lee then knocked down a three with 5:34 remaining. The two sides proceeded to trade points before a triple from Dean started a 15-2 run that gave UCI a 36-14 advantage at the half.
 
Cal State Fullerton (5-8, 1-2 Big West) started the scoring in the third frame but UC Irvine eventually scored six unanswered points to go up, 44-19, at the 6:05 mark. The Anteaters stayed out front by 20 the rest of the way. Back-to-back layups from Amelia Scharpf closed out the scoring in the quarter and put the visitors on top, 52-28.
 
The 'Eaters built a 29-point lead early in the fourth following a Konate jumper and a 3-pointer from Lee. They cruised the rest of the way with a three from Tarryn Ross putting a stamp on the 68-44 victory.
 
UP NEXT: UC Irvine will make its way to UC Davis for a 3 p.m. Big West showdown on Saturday, Jan. 6.
 
NOTES
• UC Irvine held its opponent to 60 points or less for the third-straight game and ninth time this season.
• The Anteaters are 3-0 in Big West play for the third-straight year.
• Since 2020-21, the 'Eaters are 44-10 (.815) in Big West regular-season games.
• UCI improved to 8-0 when shooting 40% or better this season.
• Déja Lee has reached double figures in scoring in each of the last four contests.
• Neveah Parkinson had her second double-figure rebounding game.
• Nevaeh Dean has been efficient from distance as she is now 5-of-7 from 3-point range this season.
• UC Irvine has won nine of its last 10 against Cal State Fullerton and now leads the all-time series, 49-40.