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Brown University
2-1
California
2-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 25 | 22 | 25 | 17 | 89 |
| Brown | 25 | 20 | 23 | 11 | 79 |
Mehta Scores Career-High 33, Women's Hoops Falls to No. 20 California, 89-79
11/19/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Junior guard Shayna Mehta scored a career-high 33 points and set a single-game program record with nine made 3-pointers, but Brown University women's basketball fell to No. 20 California, 89-79, on Sunday afternoon at the Pizzitola Sports Center.
The Bears (2-1) held a lead in the third quarter, pulled within two points early in the fourth quarter, and came within two possessions inside of the final three minutes before the visiting Golden Bears (2-1) held on for the win.
"I'm proud of our girls," Brown head coach Sarah Behn said. "We didn't make a lot of turnovers and shot the ball well most of the time. In the end, the physicality difference and the depth that they have inside made it really hard for us to rebound."
Mehta (San Francisco, Calif.) netted her career-best 33 points on 12-of-22 shooting from the field and 9-of-15 shooting from 3-point distance. With her nine 3-pointers, Mehta eclipsed the previous program record of seven made treys and tied for second in Ivy League history in 3-pointers made in a game.
She scored 22 points in the opening 13 minutes, added three assists, and netted 30 or more points in a game for the second time in her career. Mehta's nine made triples helped Brown set a single-game team record with 16 made 3-pointers.
Sophomore guard Justine Gaziano (Natick, Mass.) netted 19 points on 8-of-16 shooting overall and 3-of-8 shooting from 3-point territory alongside four rebounds and three assists. Junior guard Taylor Will (Arlington Heights, Ill.) tallied 16 points, five boards, four assists, and three steals.
Junior forward Erika Steeves (Montreal, Quebec) posted team highs with six rebounds and a career-best seven assists while freshman center Jenna Benzinger (Williamstown, Mass.) blocked a game-high three shots in five minutes.
In a homecoming for California head coach Lindsay Gottlieb, a 1999 Brown graduate, the Bears hosted a game against a Pac-12 opponent for the first time in program history.
For Cal, two-time All-American Kristine Anigwe totaled a double-double on 28 points and 25 rebounds, including 12 offensive boards. Penina Davidson compiled a double-double on 15 points and 12 boards, and Mikayla Cowling dished out a game-high eight assists.
The Golden Bears controlled the game on the glass, out-rebounding Brown 58-31 with 26 offensive rebounds. Cal out-scored Brown in the paint, 46-22. The Bears countered with their program-record 16 made 3-pointers and held the visitors to 4-of-16 shooting from beyond the arc.
"I think that we'll grow from this, and it should give us some confidence when we play some of the higher ranked teams in the Ivy League," Behn said.
Brown connected on four 3-pointers inside of the opening 4:17 to gain an early 14-10 edge. Mehta made two of the 3-pointers while Steeves and Will each hit one from distance. After Cal used a 10-0 run to pull ahead 20-14 with 2:53 left in the first, Mehta scored the Bears' next eight points, including a pair of 3-pointers, to cut the margin to 23-22. Gaziano knocked down a wing 3-pointer just before the end of the quarter to tie the score at 25-25 at the end of one.
Mehta netted eight points – including two more shots from deep – in the first three minutes of the second quarter to push Brown ahead 35-30. The Golden Bears responded with an 11-0 run as the visitors pulled ahead 41-35 with 3:18 remaining in the half. Senior guard Megan Reilly (Norwood, N.J.) and Mehta both knocked down 3-pointers in the final 1:17 of the half to bring Brown within 47-45 of Cal at the break.
The two teams traded baskets to open the second half with 3-pointers from Gaziano and Mehta staking Brown to a 57-55 advantage with 6:32 to go in the third quarter. The Golden Bears countered with a 12-0 run, grabbing a 67-57 edge. A 3-point play from Will, treys from Mehta and senior forward Janie White (Clarksville, Tenn.), and two free throws from Will cut the deficit to 70-68 before Cal brought a 72-68 lead into the fourth quarter.
A layup from Will to open the fourth frame kept Brown within 72-70 before Cal scored nine straight points to gain an 81-70 lead – its largest – with 6:19 to play. Gaziano netted seven of the Bears' next nine points to slice the edge to 84-79 with 2:14 to go, but the visitors made enough free throws down the stretch to seal the win.
Next, Brown heads to Stockton, Calif., to play in the Turkey Tip-Off at the University of the Pacific beginning with a match-up against Hampton University on Friday, Nov. 25 at 4:00 p.m. ET (1:00 p.m. PT).
Game Notes:
Brown and Cal met for the first time … The Bears played their second-ever contest against a Pac-12 foe. Brown fell to Washington at Florida International, 70-55, on Dec. 27, 1989 … Brown posted 22 assists as a team, totaling 20 or more assists for the second time in three games to open the year … Shayna Mehta, Justine Gaziano, and Taylor Will have all scored in double figures in all three games this season … Mehta's 33 points tied for the eighth-most in a single game in school history. Gaziano also scored 33 points last year at Princeton (Jan. 13, 2017) … Mehta posted her 14th career game with 20 or more points and her first this season. Her previous career high was 30 points at Bryant (Dec. 6, 2015), a game in which she tied the previous program record with seven made 3-pointers … Mehta, Gaziano, and Will all scored in double figures for the 46th, 24th, and 23rd times in their respective careers … Freshman guard McKenna Dale made her collegiate debut.
Video of all Brown women's basketball home contests and all Ivy League games, home and away, will be broadcast live on the Ivy League Network.
Tickets for all Brown women's basketball games can be purchased online, by calling the Brown Athletics Ticket Office at (401) 863-2773, or by walking up to the box office located in the Pizzitola Sports Center, open Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
