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Casey Nash scored 25 points against No. 22 Cal Saturday night, but it wasn't enough as the Beavers lost a heartbreaking double overtime game. It was Nash's last game in Gill.

Women lose double OT thriller

Beavers have several chances down stretch to upset No. 22 California Bears, but can't convert and fall 67-61 on senior night

By: Lindsay Schnell

Posted: 2/19/07

Ashley Walker and the Cal Bears knew it would take a lot to slow senior guard Casey Nash.

"Guarding Casey is a team effort," Walker said. "It takes all five people."

Nash scored 25 points, but went cold in two overtimes, hitting just one field goal in the final 10 minutes of play as the Beavers lost to No. 22 Cal 67-61 Saturday in Gill.

A baseline 3-pointer by Ashley Allen put the Beavers up 52-50 with 2:26 left in regulation. Cal then went inside to Devanei Hampton - who finished with 15 points and eight rebounds - who scored a tough layup over two OSU defenders to tie the score. After an OSU turnover, the Bears called a timeout to diagram a play with 34.8 seconds remaining on the game clock and 26 on the shot clock. But the Beavers played suffocating, lockdown defense and refused to let Cal get a shot. OSU couldn't convert on the other end though, and the teams headed to overtime.

Oregon State went up 57-54 on two free throws from Nash, but Cal answered with a steal and layup from Keanna Levy. OSU point guard Mercedes Fox-Griffin then hit one of two from the foul line to put the Beavers ahead 58-56. Walker scored inside for Cal on the next possession and Fox-Griffin couldn't get a shot off as time ran out, forcing another overtime.

"It is what it is," said OSU coach LaVonda Wagner. "We had opportunities four or five times. It didn't come up on the strong side of what we wanted, but we battled and they're a top 25 team and we're not and I thought we executed and played as well as we could."

OSU scored the first points in the second overtime when Judie Lomax hit one of two free throws to put the Beavers up 59-58, but Cal had an answer every time. The Bears pounded the ball inside to Hampton, who finished 7-for-13 from the field. Nash hit an 8-footer with 3:14 left, but it would be the last points OSU scored. The Bears took control midway through the second extra period, going up 64-61 after a pair of free throws from Walker. They sealed the win with another layup from Walker inside and a free throw from Hampton.

"We came out and fought hard and had a couple different chances to close it out, but definitely the atmosphere is amazing," Nash said.

OSU had multiple chances to win the game, but costly turnovers and key missed free throws did the Beavers in. In two overtimes OSU coughed the ball up five times; in the 40 minutes before that, the Beavers recorded just 11 turnovers.

"We had to come up with some big possessions and we turned the ball over," Wagner said.

The Beavers also struggled against a physical Cal team to get the ball inside to Nash, playing in her last game at Gill Coliseum.

"They grabbed her, they held her and they played her very physical," Wagner said. "And there was no call."

Nash snagged four steals and played nearly all 50 minutes before leaving to a standing ovation in the closing seconds.

"For that kid to come in and put a team on her back, it's been fun to watch and it's taken the league by storm," said Cal coach Joanne Boyle. "They are playing with every team that walks in this door and that's a testament to LaVonda and her program."

It was also the last game for senior guard Ebony Young, a fifth-year senior who has battled through multiple injuries. Young played just three minutes but forced a Cal turnover in the first half and left the game to applause.

It was Cal's 20th win of the season, the first time since the 1991-92 season the Bears (20-7, 10-6 Pacific-10) have recorded that feat. The Beavers (8-17, 3-13) have now lost seven straight, and have just two games remaining on the season, a road up north to play Washington and Washington State this week.

Cal held a slim lead most the first half but a steal and layup by Nash as time expired gave the Beavers an emotional edge heading into the locker room. The Bears' six-point victory matched their largest lead of the game, a 23-17 advantage with 7:55 left in the first half.