UC Davis women beat UCI for second straight Big West title

LAS VEGAS (AP) — Cierra Hall scored 23 points, Evanne Turner had 22 and top-seeded UC Davis pulled away late in the third quarter to beat No. 2 seed UC Irvine 61-42 on Saturday night in the Big West Conference tournament championship.

It was the second straight title and third overall for UC Davis (13-2), which also won the tournament in 2011. The Aggies are also the first to win back-to-back championships since Cal State Northridge in 2014 and 2015.

Hall, the Big West Conference Player of the Year, and Turner were a combined 18-of-28 shooting and made six of the Aggies' seven 3-pointers. Sage Stobbart added five points and 12 rebounds.

Neither team held more than a four-point lead until the Aggies ended the third quarter on a 10-2 surge for a 40-34 advantage. Turner scored 11 points and Hall added six as the Aggies outscored UCI 21-8 in the fourth.

Chloe Webb had 16 points and nine rebounds to lead the Anteaters (15-9). Kayla Williams added 12 points on four 3-pointers.

UC Davis leads the series 32-9 and is 4-1 against UCI in the tournament. It was the Anteaters' fifth appearance in the championship game, and they won the title in 1997.

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