CHICO – There wasn’t a whole lot of finesse exhibited on the Acker Gym floor Thursday night, as the Chico State women’s basketball team muscled, clawed and scrapped its way to a 51-47 victory over visiting Cal State Monterey Bay. In a game that featured plenty of bumping and collisions, 42 total turnovers and a combined 34 percent shooting by the two teams, the Wildcats came up big when they had to, outscoring the Otters 7-1 down the stretch to register their fourth straight win and keep their hopes of hosting a first round conference tournament game alive.
Chico State improved to 16-9 overall and pulled into a tie with Cal State L.A. for fifth place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) standings. Going into tomorrow’s regular season finale, the ’Cats are just a game behind Cal Poly Pomona, Humboldt State and Monterey Bay, which are all tied for second place. The top four teams in the conference will earn a home date next Tuesday in the opening round of the CCAA Championship Tournament, and to earn one of those coveted spots, the Wildcats need to beat Cal State East Bay Friday and hope either the Lumberjacks or Otters stumble in their regular season finale.
McKenzie Dalthorp, whose layup with 36 seconds remaining put Chico State ahead to stay, scored 10 points on the night, with Crystal Sewell also contributed 10 points to the Wildcat attack. Synchro Bull added eight points and a team-high seven rebounds. Brittani Jefferson posted a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds for Cal State Monterey Bay.
Both teams started slowly in the first half, and it took a Sewell jumper nearly nine minutes into the period to put the Wildcats in double figures. Chico State led 13-10 with 8:26 left in the half when the ’Cats used a 7-2 run – highlighted by a Jazmine Miller 3-pointer – to up their advantage to 20-12. Down by seven late in the period, Monterey Bay scored the final four points of the half, and Chico State had to be content with a 22-19 lead at intermission.
The Wildcats led for most of the second half, but couldn’t ignite a big run to extend their advantage. Chico State led by six on several occasions, but the Otters battled back each time, finally catching the ’Cats at 42-all, and then taking a 44-42 lead with 3:27 to go. Monterey Bay was still out in front 46-44 when the Chico State defense took over, not allowing a field goal for the final 2:34 of the contest. The Otters were still hanging on to a one point lead when Bull fed Dalthorp for the layup that put the Wildcats on top 47-46 with under a minute to go. Chico State got the ball back following a Monterey Bay turnover, and Natasha Smith hit two free throws to put the ’Cats up by three with 15 seconds to play. Smith then provided the back-breaker when she immediately stole the inbounds pass and scored on a layup with 10 seconds left, and Chico State would run out the clock to secure the 51-47 victory.
BOX SCORE
Chico State and Cal State East Bay – which needs a win to lock down the last remaining CCAA Championship Tournament berth – square off tomorrow at Acker Gym to wrap up the regular season. Tipoff is slated for 5:30 p.m.
