REDLANDS, Calif. – The University of Redlands Women's Basketball team had all five starters record double-digit scoring efforts Tuesday night in a 90-82 victory over Illinois College.
The Bulldogs who played their final home non-conference game continues to look strong improving to 7-2, 2-0 SCIAC, while winning six of their last seven.
86 of the 90 points on the night came from the five starters led by Chyanne Pagkalinawan (Valencia, CA) who poured in 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting along with a 3-for-6 effort from behind the arc. She also added four rebounds, eight assists and a steal. This was her third straight double digit scoring effort and her fifth on the season.
Alyssa Downs (South San Francisco, CA) added 18 points with 15 of them coming from behind the arc. She also had six rebounds, two assists and a steal. First-Year Colbi Zorich (Kenmore, WA) joined Downs with 18 points, going 5-of-7 from the field coupled with four rebounds and four assists. Fellow First-Year Aliyah Anderson (Oceanside, CA) chipped in with 17 points and five assists and Hannah Jerrier (Canton, MA) rounded out the starters with her fifth double double with 13 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, three steals and two blocks.
The Maroon and Grey trailed by two after the opening ten minutes, but used the two middle frames to take an 11-point lead, which they would hold onto.
Redlands got off to a slow start after returning home from Washington over the weekend, as they fell behind 9-4 in the early stages. Anderson sparked six straight soon after with a quick four points and Jerrier added a layin to put UR on top by one.
The rest of the quarter saw three ties, while Anderson again helped to keep the Bulldogs close with a three off a Zorich assist with :26 seconds left as the first ended 25-23 Lady Blues.
In the first minute of the second quarter Redlands tied the game up thanks to a Jerrier layup, but the Lady Blues would respond by going on a 5-0 run. Much like the first quarter the Bulldogs wouldn't go away, deadlocking the game at 30-30 thanks to five Pagkalinawan points.
The Bulldogs and Lady Blues had a period of back-and-forth before a 9-2 Redlands surge would swing the momentum, while giving them their largest lead of the game at six, 42-36. During the run Downs added a triple and two free-throws, Anderson knocked down a jumper and Pagkalinawan would tack on another three ball. The Bulldogs kept this momentum and led by five, 43-38 at the break.
Zorich opened the second half with a quick two points inside to keep the UR offense churning. Then after an IC free throw, Downs would make a free throw herself before hitting a three off another Pagkalinawan assist as the lead grew to double digits for the first time, 49-39.
After a great start to the half, the Bulldogs allowed the Lady Blues to get back into the game with a 10-4 run as the lead shrunk to four, 53-49. Redlands would quickly gather themselves stringing together five in a row over the next minute as they grew the advantage back to nine, 58-49.
Across the final 2:27, Pagkalinawan would score five points and Anderson would add a pair of jumpers to help the Bulldogs move ahead by eleven, 68-57.
Opening the fourth quarter, IC scored eight unanswered points and got within a possession, 68-65, for the first time since the three-minute mark of the second quarter. Zorich would come to the Bulldogs rescue though with six-straight as Redlands' lead was extended to seven, 74-67, with 5:19 on the clock.
Zorich would end up scoring eight-of-ten points for the Bulldogs, which carried down to the 3:15 mark as they led by eight. The Lady Blues would get within five with :49 seconds remaining, but the Bulldogs would hold on 90-82 thanks to a 5-for-6 mark at the line across the final :26 seconds.
Redlands shot 49.2% from the field, 42.9% from three-point territory and 79.3% from the free-throw line. They held the edge on the glass 40-38, added 32 points in the paint, 11 points off turnovers, 22 assists and nine second chance points.
The Bulldogs will be off for eight days after completing a four-game stretch in a six-day period. They return to the court with a neutral non-conference game hosted by Chapman University on Wednesday, December 28 at 4:00 p.m. against Albion.
