The fight for the Big West women’s basketball regular-season title came down to the final day of conference play. The Tritons and Anteaters were tied atop the conference standings on Saturday morning, with both teams needing a win to guarantee at least a share of the regular-season title. Less than an hour before tipoff in La Jolla, UC Irvine beat UC Davis, securing its stake in the title.
With the heat on high, UC San Diego women’s basketball (22-8, 17-3 Big West) downed UC Santa Barbara (20-9, 12-8 Big West), weathering a back-and-forth battle to win 72-65. The Tritons kept their cool and ended the regular season off with a bang. Junior guard Dymonique Maxie made her 136th assist and junior center Erin Condron caught her 255th rebound — both setting Division-I program records. Together, the Tritons were able to beat the Gauchos, co-claiming the regular season title with UCI.
“Winning is not easy; if it was, everybody would do it,” head coach Heidi VanDerveer said in a postgame interview with The UCSD Guardian.
The game kicked off with the quick-footed Gauchos going on an 8-0 run, outpacing the Tritons on offense and blocking them out on defense. Over three minutes into the game, Maxie put a stop to the Gauchos’ reign of terror and finally put up two Triton points.
The Tritons chipped away at the Gauchos’ lead, tying it 19-19 in the final seven seconds of the first quarter. The second quarter was equally as challenging, with both teams going shot for shot. Condron, senior guard Makayla Rose, and freshman guard Lev Feiman helped rack up points for the Tritons. However, a formidable Gaucho interior defense put up five blocks in the quarter to maintain a slim 36-33 lead going into halftime.
The turnover battle would play a critical role in turning the tide in the Tritons’ favor. UCSD’s aggressive press forced the Gauchos into 10 turnovers in the second half. The Tritons, on the other hand, turned the ball over only twice in the half. Rose led the way with four steals, bringing her season total to 96. Rose ended the regular season with the second most steals in the Big West and the 12th most in the nation. She also holds the Division-I program record for most steals in a season.
“Makayla’s been with us — this is her first year, and she has wanted to compete for championships, and she has given her blood, sweat, and tears in order to make it happen,” VanDerveer said. “And they’re cutting down nets. … It’s something that’s really special, something they’ll remember for the rest of their lives.”
In the dying minutes of the game, freshman Feiman stepped up. With the regular-season title on the line, Feiman scored 12 points on 6-for-6 shooting in the final quarter, including a pair of crucial layups that widened the Triton lead to five. Up by two with less than a minute left, Rose scored her 24th and 25th points of the game to put the Tritons firmly in control.
With the win, UCSD secured its first-ever Big West regular-season title, capping off a memorable season where the Tritons lost only thrice in conference play. UCSD shared the title with UCI, which matched its 17-3 conference record.
With a regular-season title in hand, the next big challenge for UCSD is its fight to repeat as Big West champions this week in Henderson, Nevada. The Tritons earned the No. 2 seed, automatically putting them in the semifinals, where they will play the winner of the quarterfinals at 2:30 p.m. on Friday.
“I’m really excited to go, and with this specific team … I think we’re prepared; we’re ready to go,” Rose said. “We’re really locked in.”
Last year, the Tritons shocked the Big West in a Cinderella run to March Madness. This year, they will compete in Henderson as co-favorites. Despite the pressure to defend UCSD’s Big West title, VanDerveer remains unfazed.
“I want to enjoy today, and I want our team to enjoy today because, you know, what happens tomorrow happens tomorrow,” VanDerveer said. “I think that what happens next year will happen next year. We’re going to enjoy it; we’re going to celebrate. We’re going to understand how far the team has come and embrace getting better every day.”
