BOX SCORE

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SEASIDE, Calif. — Often time, the measure of a champion isn't about how a team plays when everything is going well; it's about how the team responds when it's not getting the breaks. By that definition, Saturday's 55-47 win over Cal State San Bernardino could prove to be a defining moment in the 2013 Cal State Monterey bay women's basketball season.

Coming off a big victory over defending CCAA champion UC San Diego Friday night, CSUMB (9-3, 6-3 CCAA) looked out of sorts throughout the first half of Saturday's contest with the Coyotes. San Bernardino (6-8, 4-6) turned 11 first-half Otter turnovers into 15 points, then took the air out of the ball while building an 11-point lead, 28-17, by halftime.

While University of the Pacific transfer Eliza Dy and reigning CCAA Player of the Week Trinidee Trice are a handful for most teams, the Otters did a reasonable job limiting their damage by holding the duo to nine total points in the first half. But senior guard Jaslyn Cosey, who torched the Otters for 20 points last season in The Kelp Bed, scored nine of her game-high 13 points in the first half to lead the upset bid.

“We know Dy and Trice would be keys to beating San Bernardino,” said CSUMB Head Coach Renee Jimenez. “On back-to-back nights we locked down four of the best players in the conference. Our kids bought into their scouts and did everything we asked.”

More shocking than the 17 points the Otters managed in the first half was the 28 points the stingy Otter defense allowed to a Coyote team that entered the game averaging just 54 points per night. But those trends turned on a dime after halftime.

The Otters opened the second half with a stop when Stefanie Corgel (Manhattan Beach/UCSB) blocked a Cosey jumper on the opening possession. Corgel then took advantage of a Holly Holcomb (Ventura/Buena HS) offensive rebound to knock down a three that got the deficit back to single digits.

While the Otter offense was scoring on four of its first five possessions in the second half, the Otter defense began playing like, well, the Otter defense. CSUMB limited the Coyotes to 10 points over the first 11 minutes of the second half, turning the one-time 11-point deficit into a 40-38 lead on an Angelique Bailey (Fontana/Etiwanda HS) jumper with less than nine minutes remaining.

San Bernardino managed to tie the game again at 40-40, but the Otters followed with six unanswered points and maintained at least a two-possession lead for the balance of the game.

“The best part of the weekend was that we got better as a team,” said Jimenez. “We finally played with confidence and fire.”

Sophomore guard Nikki Beckman (Dublin/Ohlone College) led the balanced Otter attack for the second consecutive night, finishing with 12 points. Holcomb, meanwhile, matched her career-high with 13 rebounds and added a career-high four assists.

CSUMB hits the road for its next two games, beginning with a big showdown at No. 13 Chico State Friday in Chico. The Otters return home to host San Francisco State Feb. 1.