Gauchos lose at UC Irvine and will be seeded #5 in Big West Championship in women’s basketball
IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Santa Barbara Women's Basketball team (18-12, 12-8 Big West) wrapped up their first regular season under Head Coach Renee Jimenez on Saturday in Irvine. While the result did not go the Gauchos' way, falling, 62-49, to UC Irvine (21-9, 15-5), Santa Barbara had already clinched their spot in The Big West Championship, where they are in line to be the No. 5 seed.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Unsurprisingly in a matchup between two teams who hang their hats on defense, scoring was at a premium in the first quarter. After the Anteaters took a 4-0 lead early, Olivia Bradley answered with a three-pointer, then Alyssa Marin drew and made a pair of free throws to give the Gauchos their first lead of the day, 5-4, just over four minutes into the game. Neither team scored for another three minutes, then UC Irvine re-took the lead. But the Gauchos did not go away, staying within four points throughout the quarter. Marin made a late layup to make the score 11-9, Anteaters, when the buzzer sounded.
The second quarter was similarly low-scoring, but the hosts were able to extend their lead to as many as eight points after three minutes. Santa Barbara came back though, with Borter making a jumper to stop Irvine's scoring run, then Jessica Grant hit a three pointer to make it a one-possession game, and Marin's three-pointer tied the scores at 17 with just under three minutes to play. However, the Anteaters pulled away again and led by seven, 24-17, at halftime.
The third quarter was wildly different from the first two, with both teams scoring 20 points. The only issue was that Irvine scored 27 to Santa Barbara's 20. On multiple occasions, the Gauchos pulled within a possession of the Anteaters: Skylar Burke's layup inside the first three minutes, a Bradley layup with just over four minutes left, and Cayla Williams' three-pointer with three and a half left to play. But again, the hosts made a late-quarter run and led, 51-37, when the horn sounded. The Gauchos won the fourth quarter, but that was another lower-scoring affair, with Santa Barbara only getting one point back in the frame.
BY THE NUMBERS
Skylar Burke and Cayla Williams led the Gauchos in points on Saturday, scoring 11 each.
Elsewhere on the stat sheet, Laurel Rockwood led the team in rebounds with six, while Burke's three assists led the Gauchos in that category.
UP NEXT
Santa Barbara heads to Henderson, Nevada for The Big West Championship next week. Finishing the season with a 12-8 record in conference play, the Gauchos are tied for fifth place in the conference standings, alongside Long Beach State and UC Riverside. Thanks to tiebreakers, Santa Barbara is in line to receive the No. 5 seed, which would put them in line for a Blue-Green Rivalry matchup against Cal Poly at 12 noon on Wednesday, March 12, though The Big West has yet to release official seeds and first-round matchups.
(Article courtesy UCSB Athletics).
