SRJC 53, Sacramento City College 62
The Bear Cubs (4-6, 0-1) played their last game of 2018 on the road at Sacramento City College. The Panthers (10-4, 1-0) took the first shot of the game and sank the 3-pointer. The Bear Cubs were successful on their first shot—Maddie Strom's low post move. During the next two minutes Shayla Newman scored inside and banked in a putback for a 6-3 lead at the 6:30 mark. The Panthers tallied the next seven points before Maiya Flores' 3-pointer got the score to 9-10. The Panthers' 6'0" forward, Maddison Coleman, stepped out beyond the 3-point line and swished the shot. Flores dropped in a second 3-pointer with 3:44 on the clock. Over a minute later the Panthers made two free throws, and then Jasmine Henderson's 3-pointer tied the score at 15-15. Britta Irvine's 10-footer briefly put the Bear Cubs in front. The Panthers tied the score 20 seconds later. The Bear Cubs missed their last shot of the quarter, and then the Panthers drained a 3-pointer right before the buzzer for a 20-17 margin as the quarter ended.
Both teams struggled to score in the first four minutes of the second quarter, but the Panthers were able to sink two field goals about two minutes apart. Shayla Newman's inside shot with 5:58 on the clock made the score 19-24. The Panthers added a field goal and a 3-pointer before DJ Hayes' successful drive at the 4:14 mark. The Panthers put in a field goal and one of two free throws with 3:12 left for a 32-21 lead. Jasmine Henderson's 3-pointer with 1:14 remaining was the Bear Cubs' last basket of the quarter. The Panthers put in a pull-up jumper four seconds before the buzzer to take a 34-24 lead into halftime.
Ninety seconds into the third quarter Brandy Huffhines got the scoring going with a 3-pointer. Britta Irvine dropped in a 12-footer 17 seconds later and Maiya Flores a 3-pointer a minute afterwards. Jasmine Henderson's one free throw with 6:31 on the clock cut the deficit to 30-37. The Panthers answered with a 3-pointer to get their lead back up to 10 points. One free throw by Cammie Barsuglia and a 3-pointer by Britta Irvine closed the gap to 34-40. Barsuglia's 3-pointer at the 3:30 mark put the score at 37-42. The Panthers then hit a 3-pointer followed by a field goal. With 1:02 left Shayla Newman hustled after a pass that was nearly intercepted in the key, then took two steps and banked in the layup to complete the scoring in the quarter with the Bear Cubs behind 39-47.
The Bear Cubs started the fourth quarter with successful drives by DJ Hayes and Maiya Flores in the first 45 seconds to get to 43-49. After Lizeth Zavala made one of two free throws with 6:04 on the clock the hole had expanded to 44-53. With 3:50 left Jasmine Henderson finally ended the Bear Cubs' string of missed shots at nine with a scoring drive and free throw to complete the 3-point play, making the score 47-55. Maiya Flores' 3-pointer 45 seconds later got the Bear Cubs within five points at 50-55. With 2:37 left Coleman hit another big 3-pointer. Shayla Newman scored on a drive to get to 52-58 with 2:06 remaining. The Panthers sank a 2-footer on their next possession. With 53 seconds to go Cammie Barsuglia was knocked to the floor as she attempted a 3-pointer. She went to the free throw line to shoot three, but only the third one dropped through the net. Shayla Newman rebounded the Panthers' next miss, but the Bear Cubs made a bad pass as they attempted to get in position for a shot that instead ended up in their opponent's hands. Instead of running out the clock, a Panther guard took the easy dribbles in to score a layup with three seconds to go, making the margin of victory 62-53.
The Bear Cubs played a good first quarter as they kept pace with their opponents by making 7 out of 13 shots (54%). Unfortunately, a cold second quarter (3 out of 14 for 21%) put them into too big of a hole. The Panthers had three players score in double figures. Brandy Huffhines was their leading scorer with 14. Maddison Coleman and Nanai Maui both contributed 10 points each.
Maiya Flores led the Bear Cubs with 14 points and 3 steals. Jasmine Henderson, feeling more mobile, tallied 10 points. Shayla Newman registered her fourth double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Britta Irvine added 7 points, Cammie Barsuglia 5, DJ Hayes 4, Maddie Strom 2, and Lizeth Zavala 1. Britta Irvine led in assists with 4.