LONG BEACH, Calif. — Sacramento State rallied from 12 points down in the third quarter to take the lead, then came out on top in a back-and-forth fourth quarter to end its Southern California trip with a victory, edging Long Beach State by a 57-54 score on Saturday afternoon.
The Hornets improved to 4-1 overall on the season with only their third win in nine tries all time against The Beach. Sacramento State opens with four wins in its first five games for the second straight year and the third time in the last four seasons.
Meanwhile, Long Beach State remained winless on the year, falling to 0-4 despite a game-high 29 points from leading scorer JaQuoia Jones-Brown.
Three Hornets finished in double figures led by sophomore Rubi Gray's 13 points, while Natalie Picton ended the day with 12 points, four rebounds, three assists, and two steals, and Benthe Versteeg added 11 points, six rebounds, and six assists.
Sophomore Brooklyn Taylor finished with seven points and a team-high nine rebounds, while senior Fatoumata Jaiteh added five steals to go with five points and four rebounds.
In a preview of what will be a clash between Big West Conference rivals next season, Sacramento State trailed by seven at the half and quickly fell behind by 12 just over a minute into the third period thanks to baskets by Jones-Brown and Kennan Ka that made it 35-23.
Elizabeth Abiara made 1-of-2 from the line and Gray added a lay-up to spark a 15-2 run over the next five-and-a-half minutes to make it a one-point game, then took its first lead since the second minute of the conteest on a lay-up by Versteeg that made it 38-37 with 3:30 to play.
Long Beach State rebuilt its lead to four with 1:25 to go before Gray turned an offensive rebound into a three-pointer with :49 to go to claw the Hornets back to within one heading into the final quarter.
A Gray lay-up put Sacramento State back up one to start the fourth before Jones-Brown went on a personal 5-0 run for The Beach to make it 49-45 with 6:39 to play.
Picton drained another three-pointer off an offensive rebound to get her team within one and Taylor looked like she had given the Hornets a two-point lead with another three, but it was changed to a two-pointer, leaving Sacramento State with a 50-49 lead with just under five minutes to go.
The two teams traded baskets over the next two minutes before a free throw by Khylee Pepe tied the game at 52-all at the 2:37 mark. Jaiteh then came up clutch, sinking a jumper 11 seconds later to break the deadlock and Taylor added a free throw a minute later after grabbing two key boards — one on each end — for a 55-52 advantage with 1:23 to play.
Jones-Brown drew a foul after each team turned the ball over and sank two free throws to bring The Beach to within a point with under a minute to play, but Picton forced a jumpball with the possession arrow in Sacramento State's favor and Versteeg made it pay off with a lay-up for the game's final tally.
Long Beach State, which did not hit a field goal over the final 3:55 of game time, had one more chance to tie, but Jones-Brown's three-pointer was off the mark at the buzzer.
After shooting just 28 percent in the first 20 minutes, the Hornets hit 45 percent from the floor in the second half and shot at a 50 percent clip in the fourth quarter alone. Meanwhile, The Beach shot just 33 percent after the break and just 23 percent in the final 10 minutes.
Of Sacramento State's game-high 32 rebounds, 12 of those were on the offensive end, leading to 21 second-chance points. The Hornets also held a 30-24 lead in points in the paint and had their bench outscore their counterparts by a 15-2 count.
Having played its last three games on the road, Sacramento State returns to Hornet Pavilion for a pair of home contests before the Thanksgiving holiday, welcoming Cal State Fullerton on Friday (Nov. 21) before hosting Causeway rival UC Davis on Monday (Nov. 24). Both games are scheduled for 6:30 starts.
