BERKELEY, Calif. – Sacramento State point guard Lianna Tillman scored a career-high 27 points in her Hornets debut Tuesday night, but despite the performance, the Hornets dropped their season opener at Cal, 90-71.

With the loss, Sacramento State starts the season 0-1. Tuesday night's game was also the first of the year for the Bears, who open 1-0.

Sacramento State hung with Cal for most of Tuesday night's season opener. The Hornets trailed by four at the end of the first quarter, and while that deficit did continue to grow, Sacramento State found itself down just eight, 42-34, at the half.

The Hornets continued to chip away the deficit, climbing to within six early in the fourth quarter. A layup by Tillman with seven minutes left in the fourth quarter made it a 66-60 game, but that was as close as the Hornets would get.

Cal proceeded to go on a pair of 9-0 runs over the next few minutes en route to a 29-point fourth quarter, putting things out of reach as Sacramento State fell, 90-71.

Tillman, a graduate transfer from Pacific, made her presence known in her Sacramento State debut. The point guard finished with a career-high 27 points on 10-for-24 shooting, including a 4-for-9 showing from beyond the arc and a perfect 3-for-3 effort from the free throw line. She did most of her damage in the second half, scoring 22 of her 27 points after the break.

In addition to leading all players on Tuesday in scoring, Tillman added a team-high four assists and three steals.

Not far behind was senior guard Summer Menke, who finished just shy of a double-double, scoring 21 points while pulling in nine boards. The nine rebounds led the Hornets on Tuesday. Menke averaged a team-leading 8.3 rebounds per game a season ago.

Isnelle Natabou, Sacramento State's new 6-5 freshman center, also turned in a strong performance in her Hornets debut. Natabou scored 13 points on an efficient 5-for-7 shooting while pulling in eight rebounds, including four off the offensive glass.

Combined, the trio scored 61 of Sacramento State's 71 points and accounted for 20 of the team's 35 rebounds.

Senior guard Jazzy Carrasco had three points and added four rebounds while Jessica Rios had six on a pair of threes.

Cal was led by a trio of 20-point scorers. Jayda Curry finished with 23 points, Cailyn Crocker added 22, and Evelien Lutje Schipholt went for a double-double with 20 and 11.

Overall, Sacramento State shot 45% from the field (25-56), including 41% from three (9-22). Cal shot 55% (38-69) and was 7-for-14 (50%) from beyond the arc. The Hornets out-rebounded the Bears, 35-30, including 13-10 off the offensive glass.

The biggest difference in Tuesday's night's game came in points off turnovers. Sacramento State turned the ball over 19 times, compared to just seven giveaways for Cal. The Bears outscored the Hornets, 22-6, in points off of turnovers.

Despite the final score, Tuesday's night's showing was a positive start for the Hornets, who were competitive against their Pac-12 opponent on the road, trailing by as few as six late in the game.

Sacramento State will return home for its next contest, a Sunday afternoon matchup with the visiting San Jose State Spartans. Sunday's home opener will tip off at 2 p.m. in the Nest in Sacramento.

Tickets for Sunday's home opener are selling quickly and the game will feature a limited Sacramento State rally towel giveaway.

More information on Sunday's home opener can be found online by visiting the 2021-22 Sacramento State women's basketball homepage at HornetSports.com. Links for tickets, news, and streaming links can all be found on the 2021-22 Sacramento State women's basketball schedule page.

- HornetSports.com -