BERKELEY, Calif. – The ULM women's basketball team (8-3) dropped a road game to California (10-2) 79-55 on Thursday (Dec. 21) at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, Calif.
 
ULM was held to 35.0% shooting from the field and made 2-of-21 three-point attempts. The Golden Bears converted 10 three-point baskets and shot 39.4% from the field. Cal outrebounded the Warhawks 54-32 and collected 24 rebounds on the offensive glass, which turned into 22 second-chance points. The ULM defense forced Cal into committing 18 turnovers and poked six steals.
 
Individually, three Warhawks finished in double figures with Jakayla Johnson and Daisha Bradford both scoring 14 points. Johnson added three boards, one assist and one block while Bradford distributed seven assists. Brianna Harris fired 13 points to go along with eight rebounds. Katlyn Manuel dropped nine points and made 4-of-6 shots from the field.
 
The Bears wasted no time jumping out to the lead and started the game on an 11-0 scoring run. Leilani Mcintosh buried the Bears' third three-pointer of the first quarter at the 7:41 mark and forced a ULM timeout. Johnson drove the lane and finished a layup that got the Warhawks on the scoreboard. A Kyjai Miles steal led to another Johnson layup that trimmed the Cal lead to seven. Scores by Miles and Sania Wells brought ULM back within one possession and completed a run of eight unanswered for the Warhawks. Cal closed out the first quarter outscoring the Warhawks 11-3 and led 22-11 after one quarter of action.
 
The home team continued to add to its lead at the start of the second quarter and led by 16 points after Mcintosh completed a three-point play with 8:39 on the clock. Consecutive layups by Manuel trimmed Cal's lead to nine points with under two minutes remaining in the first half. Johnson drained a pair of shots at the charity stripe in the final minute and the 'Hawks ended the first half on a 6-0 run that cut the Bears' advantage to seven points at the break.
 
ULM scored the first four points of the second half on free throws and narrowed the Bears' lead to three points within the first two minutes. Cal's Marta Suarez hit two three-point baskets and Cal increased its lead to seven. The Bears regained a 10-point cushion after a three-point play by Lulu Laditan-Twidale at the 5:30 mark. Manuel and Harris converted field goals and brought ULM back within six points. The Bears posted five straight points and seized an 11-point lead with 2:33 left in the third. Harris scored her ninth point of the third quarter with a three-point basket that was assisted by Bradford with 2:06 left on the clock. Cal controlled a 54-44 lead at the end of the third period.
 
After Bradford made a pair of free throws, the Bears utilized a 13-0 scoring run in the early stages of the fourth quarter and pushed its lead to 67-46. ULM would not come closer than 16 points of Cal's lead in the final minutes. The Bears held the Warhawks scoreless in the last three minutes and outscored ULM 25-11 in the fourth quarter.
 
The ULM women's basketball team will begin Sun Belt Conference play at home on Dec. 30 versus James Madison. The conference opener is set for a 2 p.m. CT start inside Fant-Ewing Coliseum and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.