The No. 4 UC San Diego Women’s Basketball team (20-15, 13-7) defeated No. 3 UC Davis (21-12, 13-7) 75-66 in the finals of the 2025 Hercules Tires Big West Women’s Basketball Championships at Lee’s Family Forum in Henderson, Nev. The game ended Davis’ season and advanced San Diego to the March Madness tournament.
The teams entered the matchup evenly matched, having split the regular season series. Davis fell to UCSD 65-63 in their first matchup, but won the rematch in La Jolla, 69-58.
Both teams featured members on the All-Big West First Team, including UC San Diego sophomore guard Sumayah Sugapong and UC Davis senior guard Tova Sabel.
Neither team found an early rhythm, with the score stuck at zero until UCSD redshirt sophomore guard Gracie Gallegos stepped through for an and-one layup, sinking the freethrow.
The Tritons’ lead jumped to six after Sugapong scored on a floater in the lane. Two possessions later, she hit an Aggie defender with an in-and-out dribble before softly floating the ball into the cup. The early 8-0 run ignited the UC San Diego crowd, forcing Davis head coach Jennifer Gross to call timeout.
After the timeout, Davis ended its scoring drought on a corner catch-and-shoot three from redshirt junior center Megan Norris. On the next play, UC San Diego redshirt junior guard Victoria Baker knocked down a three from the wing off a feed from Norris, cutting the UCSD lead down to five.
The lead shot back up to 10 after Sugapong collapsed the defense on a drive before kicking it out to junior guard Sabrina Ma for a corner triple. Davis responded as junior guard Nya Epps found senior forward Mazatlan Harris for three.
The quarter ended with UC San Diego holding a commanding 16-9 lead.
At the start of the second quarter, Ma fueled the Tritons’ offense, assisting sophomore power forward/center Erin Condron on a layup before getting her own layup try to fall a minute later.
Davis remained scoreless until the 6:34 mark of the quarter, when freshman guard Avery Sussex grabbed a defensive rebound and took it the full length of the court for the finish. After going 0-for-4 from the field, Sabel knocked down her first three of the game, trimming the Tritons’ lead to nine.
UC San Diego remained relentless offensively, with redshirt sophomore guard Junaé Mahan creating separation to rise up for a midrange jumper, extending the lead to 25-14 with 4:56 remaining in the quarter.
Graduate student guard Parker Montgomery gave UCSD its largest lead of the game at 32-16 after sinking a three. Sussex responded with a three of her own. Off a missed Montgomery freethrow, Condron grabbed the offensive rebound and finished the putback layup.
The Tritons entered halftime with a commanding 34-21 lead over the Aggies.
UCSD dominated the points in the paint battle in the first half, outscoring Davis 18-4. Second-chance points also favored San Diego head coach Heidi VanDerveer’s squad 10-0.
Sugapong started the third quarter with the same aggressive mentality, attacking the rim and finishing a layup. A Sabel turnover led to a fast-break layup by Ma, who scored on an inside-hand finish.
Aggies senior guard Sydney Burns scored on a drive to the basket, but Gallegos answered by finishing through contact for an and-one, bringing the Triton crowd to its feet.
Through 6:44 in the third quarter, UC San Diego led 41-27.
Davis showed life after Baker pump-faked a defender before pulling up for an and-one jumper, making the freethrow to close the lead to 14.
An 8-0 run, sparked by a scooping Epps layup, a corner three from freshman guard Ryann Bennett and a layup from Sabel, cut San Diego’s lead to 12 and forced a Triton timeout.
After the timeout, Ma spun around Sabel for a layup. UCSD’s defense remained steadfast, holding Davis to only one point after its 8-0 run. Gallegos continued to rise to the occasion, sinking a midrange jumper to bring her scoring total to 12 on the day.
UCSD headed into the final quarter of the tournament with a 54-39 lead.
On the first possession of the fourth, Sugapong drove in and dished it to Ma in the corner for three, extending the Tritons’ lead to 18.
The teams traded baskets, with Davis refusing to go away. With 7:30 to go, UCSD remained in control with a 61-44 lead.
Both teams went scoreless for the next two minutes until Sabel connected on a midrange jumper.
Davis jumped into a full-court press, hoping to speed up the Tritons’ offense. Bennett provided a burst on both ends during this stretch, stealing the ball and scoring on two layups.
With 2:48 to go, the Aggies trapped Sugapong and forced a turnover. Epps was fouled immediately after the change of possession and went 1-for-2 at the line, trimming the lead to 14.
On the next play, Ma airballed a floater, giving the Aggies a fast-break opportunity. Baker threw a go-ahead pass to Epps, who laid it in and forced a timeout, cutting the lead to 10.
UC San Diego continued to control the offensive rebound battle, with Ma and Sugapong pulling down two offensive boards in the same possession. With 1:18 remaining, Davis pushed the ball up to Epps, who drove for the layup but was denied by Gallegos. Condron grabbed the defensive rebound and found a wide-open Ma, who scored on a layup.
Davis fouled Gallegos with 51.9 seconds remaining, putting her on the free-throw line, where she sank both shots. After inbounding the ball, Bennett pushed the ball up the court and finished a layup.
The Aggies were forced to foul to stop the clock, but UC San Diego were cold-blooded at the line. In the final minute, Gallegos was perfect, going 4-for-4 on freethrows.
UC San Diego claimed the Big West championship with a 75-66 win over UC Davis, punching its ticket to the NCAA March Madness tournament.
After the game, VanDerveer talked about the mentality her team played with after years of being ineligible to compete in the tournament.
“We’ve had to sit and watch it for the last four years, knowing and being hungry,” Vanderveer said in the postgame press conference. “I feel like our team bought into the vision. They believed. They prepared. We have tremendous leadership.”
Sugapong credited the collective in securing the championship.
“This was an all-around team win. Everyone contributed everything that was needed,” Sugapong said at the presser.
UC San Diego will face Southern University on March 19 at 6 p.m. in a nationally televised game on ESPNU at the Pauley Pavilion in Los Angeles.
Jaden Hunter is a Sports Staff Writer. He can be reached at jadenh2@uci.edu.
Edited by Jack Fedor and Jaheem Conley