LA JOLLA–All they do is win, win, win no matter what.
Tested physically on Friday and mentally on Saturday, the #1 ranked UCSD women’s basketball team passed both with flying colors, beating a tough Cal State LA team 78-63 and a not-so-tough Cal State Dominguez Hills squad 77-52 at RIMAC Arena. At 22-0, the Tritons are riding the longest winning streak in both school and conference history.
“This is a special group, I’m so proud of them for all their hard work,” said head coach Charity Elliott, “We have our own standards of basketball and what we try to achieve every time we step out on the court.”
Friday’s game featured the second place Golden Eagles from CSULA, a team which entered the night 11-3 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association, just three games behind the undefeated Tritons. Coached by Janell Jones, who led UCSD to a Final Four appearance in 2007 before leaving for Division I Mercer, L.A. brought a fierce determination to the floor and led the Tritons for most of the first half.
UC San Diego started off the game ice cold from the field, missing 21 of their first 25 shots. A raucous Spirit Night crowd of over 2,000 students created an energy normally missing from RIMAC Arena, and senior center Lauren Friedenberg (17 points, 10 rebounds) admitted the team probably came out tight as a result. However, UCSD eventually found their range in the second half.
“It just shows again the character of this team, the will…the first half was about as poor as we could play and shoot the ball offensively,” said Elliott. “I’m proud we stuck with our defense. That’s a really good team over there and I’m very proud.”
“They’re amazing and they helped us when we were struggling, they stayed with us,” said senior point guard Chelsea Carlisle (16 points) of the crowd, “We’re glad we pulled out the win for them tonight.”
Saturday’s game was a test of a different sort, as the 3-19 CSU Dominguez Hills Toros came to town. With a game like this, in which the Tritons could essentially dictate what the final score would be, the challenge was more about focus and maintaining positive energy.
“We have our own standard of basketball and a way we want to play, and we try to do that every game,” said Elliott, “I told our team before the game, there are energy givers and energy takers, and I need energy givers tonight.”
Emily Osga led the Tritons with 19 points on Saturday (Photos courtesy Jimmy Gekas/Sideline Studios)
Starting off a season well is always exciting and reaching #1 is the goal of any quality team. But at this point in the season, the expectations and goals have to be changing for UCSD. The Tritons are 22-0 with six games remaining in the regular season. They have two home games remaining before hitting the road for the final four games of the CCAA schedule. If everything remains copacetic, the Tritons could wind up serving as the host of the NCAA West Regional, giving them home court advantage all the way until the Elite Eight.
Are the Tritons starting to aim for an undefeated season and a national championship? Charity Elliott hates this question.
“We’re not looking to drop a game. We want to stay focused on what we do well and see what happens.”
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