CHICO – Cal State San Bernardino took a one-point lead with six minutes remaining in the game but couldn't withstand some hot shooting by Chico State at the end and lost the CCAA conference women's basketball opener 82-73 Thursday night.
The host Wildcats, picked to finish in fourth place in the conference in a coaches poll, improved to 4-2 on the season, 1-0 in the CCAA while CSUSB, tabbed for eighth in the poll, lost their third straight and are now 2-3 overall and 0-1 in the CCAA.
CSUSB moves on to Arcata to play Cal Poly Humboldt at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday.
In crunch time in the fourth quarter, after
Jaushlynn Ruffin and
Destiny Jackson both hit layups to give the Yotes a 62-61 advantage with 5:58 left in the game, Chico outscored the Yotes 21-11 the rest of the way to pull out the victory.
Chico sank nine of 12 field goal attempts in the quarter (75 percent) and all nine free throw attempts to seal the win. The Wildcats shot 49 percent from the field for the game (49.2 percent) and had a big edge at the foul line, sinking 20 of 24 charity tosses (83 percent).
The Yotes also shot well from the field, hitting 37 of 78 shots (41 percent), but made just five of 17 three-pointers (29.4 percent) and were just four of 10 from the foul line (40 percent).
Given all that, the Yotes put up quite a battle, led by senior
Destiny Jackson with a game-high 26 points (12 of 23 from the field), two 3-pointers, a pair of rebounds, a steal and a blocked shot in 34 minutes of action.
Auren Isaacson scored 15 points (6 of 16 from the field) in 28 minutes.
Mia Dufresne produced nine points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots in 30 minutes of playing time.
Jaida Jackson was just three of 13 from the floor and finished with seven points before fouling out with 32 seconds left in the fourth quarter and CSUSB trailing 78-71.
Chico State led 20-19 after one quarter but led 37-35 at the half after Isaacson scored on a layup following Dufresne's fifth rebound of the game with 1:07 before intermission.
The Yotes enjoyed their biggest lead of the night, 46-39 with seven minutes left in the third quarter on a bucket by
Destiny Jackson.
Oliva Lee made a pair of baskets to give CSUSB a 52-47 lead with 2:20 left in the period. However, Chico outscored the Yotes 8-0 over the final 2:20 and took a 55-52 lead into the final period.
CSUSB had the edge in bench points (21-11) and points in the paint (46-34). The two teams were tied 11 times in the game. Chico used its fast break to advantage, outscoring the Yotes 18-2 in that category.
Brandy Huffhines led the Wildcats with 24 points (10 of 14 FG), three rebounds, three assists and two steals in 33 minutes. Zhane Duckett had 19 points despite making only six of 18 shots but produced seven rebounds, eight assists, a steal and a block in 37 minutes. Jordan Allred had 12 points, sinking eight of 10 free throws to go with five rebounds in 30 minutes of play.
