Davis, Santa Barbara advance to title game
It didn’t take long for UC Davis to make an impact in the Big West Conference.
The second-seeded Aggies earned a berth in today’s tournament championship game against top-seeded UC Santa Barbara by defeating third-seeded UC Riverside, 63-53, Friday at the Anaheim Convention Center.
UC Davis (19-10), in its first year as a member of the Big West Conference, battled the two-time defending Big West champion Highlanders (14-16) in a game that featured five ties and 11 lead changes.
The Aggies outscored the Highlanders, 17-6, after trailing 47-46 with 6:54 left.
Haylee Donaghe and Heather Bates each scored 13 points to lead the Aggies. Donaghe also had three steals. Seyram Gbewonyo finished with 17 points to lead the Highlanders.
UC Davis shot 58.3% from the field (21 for 36).
Riverside shot only 27.3% (15 for 55).
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UC Santa Barbara 77, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 57 -- The Gauchos (22-7) raced past the Mustangs (13-19) to reach the tournament final for the 12th consecutive year.
Led by 15 points from Sha’Rae Gibbons, five different Gauchos reached double figures in the victory.
Lauren Pedersen scored 12 points, Chisa Ononiwu had 11, Jessica Wilson, the Big West player of the year, and Whitney Warren each had 10.
The Gauchos’ tough defense limited Cal Poly to just 40.7% shooting (22 of 54). Rebecca Tratter led the Mustangs with 18 points.
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