SEASIDE—The Chico State women's basketball team turned in the type of performance Thursday that head coach Brian Fogel would surely like to have bottled. The Wildcats kicked off an important four-game road trip in impressive fashion, combining aggressive and productive offensive play with a clamp-down defense against Cal State Monterey Bay, never trailing on the way to handing the host Otters a lopsided 82-46 loss at The Kelp Bed in Seaside.
Chico State improved to 11-6 on the season with Thursday's win while moving into a tie with Cal State LA for fourth place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) with a 7-4 conference mark. Cal State Monterey Bay dropped its sixth in a row to fall to 4-12 overall and 0-11 in CCAA play.
Bailey Jones led four Chico State players in double figures, knocking down four 3-pointers to finish with a season-high 16 points on the night. Makenzi Laporte added 15 points and eight rebounds, while Myli Martinez scored 13 points, doled out six assists, pulled down three rebounds, and grabbed three steals. Brandy Huffhines chipped in with 10 points, four assists, and three steals, with Zhane Duckett contributing eight points, a game-high nine rebounds, three assists and four steals.
The Wildcats shot 49.2 percent (30-of-61) from the field, and 44 percent (11-of-25) from 3-point range. Chico State held Monterey Bay to just 30 percent shooting, and forced 25 Otter turnovers.
The Wildcats and Otters split the first 10 points of the game, but the Chico State defense held Monterey Bay scoreless for the final 7:26 of the quarter. Meanwhile, the 'Cats reeled off 16 unanswered to take command of the contest—Jones buried a pair of 3-pointers, and two-point baskets by Jones, Duckett, Martinez, and Laporte put the Wildcats up 21-5 as the period came to an end.
Chico State scored the first seven points of the second quarter to balloon its advantage to 28-5 before the Otters converted a three-point play to end a nearly 10-minute scoring drought. The 'Cats immediately answered with an 11-3 run, highlighted by treys from Jones, Martinez, and Huffhines, to stretch the lead to 39-11. Monterey Bay sank four free throws to finish the period's scoring, and Chico State went into the locker room up 39-15.
The two teams played it fairly even over the first four minutes of the third quarter, but with the score 47-25 Chico State ripped off a 9-0 run—Laporte accounting for seven of those points with a 3-pointer, a layup, and a pair of free throws—to push the Wildcats' lead to 31. The Otters scored three points late in the period to make it a 56-28 contest heading into the fourth quarter.
The 'Cats kept the pedal to the metal in the final 10-minutes stanza. A 10-0 run, fueled by another 3-pointer by Jones, a pair of free throws by Sophia Williams, and buckets by Huffhines, Duckett, and Jazmyne Lillie, gave Chico State a 40-point advantage at 70-30. Monterey Bay finally was able to find the bottom of the bucket, hitting seven of its 15 field goals on the night in the final five minutes, but it was far too little and far too late, as the 'Cats rolled to the 82-46 victory.
The Wildcats finish out the week in The City with a Saturday afternoon matchup against San Francisco State (7-10, 3-8 CCAA). Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
