IRVINE, Calif. – UC Irvine women's basketball took down fellow Big West leader Long Beach State, 61-47, Thursday evening at the Bren Events Center.
 
With the win, the Anteaters (14-6, 8-2 Big West) remain in a tie for first with Hawai'i in the conference standings, and are now a game ahead of LBSU and UC Davis, who the 'Eaters will face on Saturday.
 
UCI stifled a Beach offense that entered tonight's contest averaging 70.6 points per game. LBSU had scored 70+ in its three previous outings, but UC Irvine held the visitors to a season-low 47.
 
Long Beach State (11-8, 7-3 Big West) led up until the Anteaters closed the first half on a 6-2 run. Nikki Tom capped the rally with a 3-pointer to give the 'Eaters a 26-23 advantage at the break. UCI ended up outscoring the Beach, 14-7, in the second period. UC Irvine kept the momentum over the final 20 minutes as it ran away with the 14-point victory.
 
BY THE NUMBERS: Junior Hunter Hernandez finished with a game-high 16 points and 11 rebounds. It was her second double-double of the season and fifth of her career.
 
Senior Déja Lee added 15 points, five rebounds and two assists, while senior Nikki Tom notched 11 points and a game-high four steals. Junior Olivia Williams rounded out a quartet of double-digit scorers for the 'Eaters with 10 points.
 
The Anteaters shot 29.6% from the field and 30% from beyond the arc. They scored 23 points off 21 forced turnovers, while committing only 10 miscues of their own. UCI also outrebounded Long Beach State, 46-41, with a 19-to-9 advantage on the offensive glass. 
 
The Beach shot 31.4% overall and 27.8% from distance. Jada Crawshaw led LBSU with 13 points and tied Hernandez for the game-high with 11 rebounds.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: Long Beach State outscored UC Irvine, 8-2, with all eight points coming from Crawshaw in the first two-and-a-half minutes. A 3-pointer from Lee started a 7-1 Anteater run that tied it up at 9-9. The Beach then reeled off seven unanswered before a Williams triple with one minute on the clock cut LBSU's margin to 16-12 at the end of the opening frame.
 
UCI opened the second period with an 8-5 spurt on the strength of 3-pointers from Hernandez and Williams, to pull back within one (21-20) at the 5:30 mark. The 'Eaters then closed out the half with a 6-2 scoring advantage for their first lead of the night. Tom ended the rally with a trey to put UC Irvine on top, 26-23, at the break.  
 
The Anteaters and the Beach went back-and-forth to start the third quarter. After Long Beach State reclaimed a 32-30 edge, another three from Lee and a Summah Hanson layup put UCI ahead, 35-32, with 6:09 remaining. LBSU tied it back up at 35-all, but the 'Eaters scored 10 unanswered points, with seven coming from Hernandez and the final three on a triple from Tom, to create some separation. Crawshaw got the final bucket of the period as UC Irvine took a 45-37 lead into the fourth.
 
The Anteaters outscored Long Beach State, 7-3, to increase its cushion to 12 (52-40) with 5:38 left in the final frame. The Beach used a mini 7-2 spurt to close the gap to seven, but the 'Eaters responded with seven-straight points to seal the 61-47 victory.
 
UP NEXT: UC Irvine begins a three-game road stretch with a trip to UC Davis this weekend. The Anteaters and Aggies are set for a 2 p.m. tip-off on Saturday, Feb. 1.
 
NOTES
• This was the 600th win in UC Irvine women's basketball history.
• UCI extended its home win streak to eight games.
• The Anteaters have won four-straight in their all-time series with Black & Blue rival Long Beach State.
• UC Irvine has now held five different Big West opponents to under 50 points.
• Déja Lee has reached double figures in scoring in eight-straight games.
• Lee is five points away from joining the 1,000-point club.
• The first of Lee's five boards tonight was her 300th career rebound.
• Nikki Tom matched her season high with four steals and ranks fifth in program history with 185 career takeaways.
• Hunter Hernandez has two of the Anteaters' three double-doubles on the year.
• Amelia Scharpf led the 'Eaters in assists (3) for the first time this season.