BERKELEY, Calif. - After a 3-0 start to the season, Auburn Women’s Basketball booked a trip to the West Coast, dropping the second of their two games on the road trip Friday night against the California Golden Bears, 63-58. This marks the second straight year Cal has gotten the best of Coach Johnnie Harris’ team after taking them down in Auburn last season.
In the first quarter, Auburn showed a little bit of road sickness as Cal jumped out to an early 10 point lead. The Tigers shot only 25 percent in the quarter and only scored 13 points while the Golden Bears made four threes on 66.6 percent and 56 percent from the field to take the big lead in the first, 23-13.
Auburn only shot 43.8 percent from the field in the second quarter, but Coach Johnnie Harris got them back to what they do best, defense. Anyone who plays basketball knows there are really only two things that travel fully, defense and effort. Auburn held Cal to only six shots in the second quarter and turned them over 10 times in the quarter to trail by 3 at the break, 33-30.
Auburn kept up the pressure after halftime, turning Cal over another 12 times and holding them to just 10 points on 33.3 percent shooting. On the other side, Deyona Gaston got going for the Tigers, scoring 8 herself in the quarter on 3/5 shooting. Auburn shot 50 percent in the quarter to take the lead in Berkeley, 49-45.
Everything fell apart down the stretch for an Auburn team trying to hold the lead with their stellar pressure style defense, but the Golden Bears did a great job to protect the ball. Auburn started out 4/9 in the quarter before the offense stalled and the Tigers only managed to make one of their last seven field goal attempts. Cal took full advantage and went on a 12-2 run over the Tigers, taking the lead and win late, 63-59.
For the Tigers, offense came from the Texas transfer Deyona Gaston, who had 16 points and 6 boards. Taylen Collins added 13 points and seven rebounds. Celia Sumbane, Taliah Scott, and Mar’shaun Bostic all had seven points apiece. Auburn shot 36.6 percent from the field and shockingly only shot five threes on the night. Auburn was third in the country in three point shooting percentage entering the night, but only made one of five for 20 percent in Berkeley. Their only three came from Taliah Scott in the first quarter.
For Cal, Lulu Twidale scored 22 points and made four triples, Ionna Krimili knocked down three threes and scored 14, and Ugonne Onyiah had 11 for the Golden Bears. Cal shot 45 percent from the floor and 38 percent from three as they found the needed points to comeback and get the win over Auburn in the fourth.
Coach Johnnie Harris will look to rally her team after the two losses as Auburn takes the long trip back across the nation and across the sea to the island of Saint Thomas for their next matchups in the Paradise Jam, Nov. 28-30. The Tigers take on Northern Iowa on the 28th at 2:30 p.m. CST, Pitt on the 29th at the same time, and Kansas on the 30th at the same time once again.
