REDDING, Calif. - Five Bobcats finished in double figures and the University of California, Merced women's basketball team downed Simpson University 75-70 in overtime on Saturday night inside the James M. Grant Center.
The Bobcats (21-6, 9-3), who had to climb out of a ten point hole in the second half before eventually winning their first overtime game since January 25, 2014, are sitting in the third spot in the California Pacific Conference standings with two games remaining.
Freshman Rainah Smith anchored the Bobcats with a stellar 14 point, 14 rebound performance for her fifth double-double of the season. Her 14 rebounds marked a career-high and she is now six rebounds away from becoming just the third Bobcat in program history to grab 200 or more rebounds in a season.
Mia Belvin added a team-high 15 points and four assists, while Mia Shannon and Aubrey Hayes added 14 and 13 points respectively.
Haylee Owen added ten points and a career-high five steals off the bench.
UC Merced was sparked in overtime by three straight makes from the field midway through the extra period. At the time of the spark, the Bobcats were trailing 68-64.
Shannon made it 68-66 but it was followed by a Simpson bucket to get their lead back to four points at 70-66.
The next trip down the floor, Hayes found Shannon to get the Bobcats back within a deuce and then added a field goal of her own to even the score for the first time since the start of the overtime period.
Simpson had the ball tied at 70 when Owen tabbed her fifth steal to give her team possession with 46 seconds on the clock.
Belvin drew a foul and sunk one of two free throws to put UC Merced up 71-70. A UC Merced defensive stop forced Simpson to foul Owen with the shot clock off. The Chula Vista, Calif., native sunk both free throws. She sunk two more foul shots before the final horn, securing the 75-70 victory.
To get to overtime, the Bobcats had to erase multiple deficits, including a double figure deficit in each half.
The Bobcats first comeback occurred after the first media timeout. Down 12-2, Hayes knocked down a deep field goal that started an 11-0 Bobcat run. Kimiko Sato cut the deficit to six with a strong move in the paint and then back-to-back baseline jumpers brought the Bobcats within two points, 12-10.
A trio of free throws put the Bobcats in front for the first time on the night at 13-12.
UC Merced's largest lead of regulation came in the second quarter when Smith splashed a triple opposite of the Red Hawks bench.
Despite the 18-14 lead, the Bobcats trailed 29-22 at intermission.
Simpson hit a triple to extend their lead to 32-22 out of the break. The Bobcats started to heat up a minute into the third quarter and Shelby Bohlmann matched Simpson with a three-point field goal of her own. Belvin sent an entry pass to Shannon that resulted in a field goal, while Belvin and Hayes combined for four free throws to get back within a possession at 34-31.
Later, trailing 45-37, the Bobcats ended the third quarter on a 13-2 run to turn their eight point deficit into a 50-47 lead.
Overall, the Bobcats outscored Simpson 28-18 in the period.
Neither team held a lead larger than two possessions in the fourth quarter and the final field goal before overtime came with 1:57 on the clock, a Smith three-point play to take a 63-62 lead.
Simpson evened the score at 63 with a Shalya Smothers make at the charity stripe with 72 seconds remaining.
UC Merced had the chance to win it in regulation but Smothers blocked the shot to halt any chance the Bobcats had.
The overtime game was the first regular season overtime game since February 4, 2017 for UC Merced.
The Bobcats left the gym Saturday night outrebounding Simpson 43-41, 16-4 on the offensive glass. UC Merced also assisted on more than half of their field goals, 16 assists on 26 made shots.
Cierra McClain and Belvin shared game-high with four assists.
Up next, the Bobcats host No. 10 University of Antelope Valley inside the Joseph Edward Gallo Gymnasium on February 14. Tip-off on Thursday night is slated for 5:30pm.
