Dec. 19, 2001
Box Score
Santa Barbara, Calif. -­ The fourth-best field goal percentage in school history translated into the largest non-conference victory margin in nearly two years for the UC Santa Barbara women's basketball team, which cruised past St. Mary's 84-61 in the Thunderdome Wednesday night.
The Gauchos connected at a 59.3% clip, making 35-of-50 shots, and also drained a season-high eight three-pointers on 14 attempts (57.1%) to even their record at 4-4 on the season. It was UCSB's second victory this season over a team that qualified for the 2001 NCAA Tournament. The defending West Coast Conference champion Gaels, playing for the first time since Dec. 8, fell to 4-4.
The opening stages of the first half suggested this game would not be reminiscent of a 53-50 defensive struggle won by SMC in Moraga, Calif., last season. Both teams came out with three number three in mind, as Santa Barbara scored its first nine points from behind the arc, including a pair of treys by junior guard Jess Hansen. At the 11:23 mark, St. Mary's went ahead 16-15 on junior guard Julie Morris' second three-pointer of the first half, but that would prove to be the visitors' last lead of the game. Sparked by a jumper from freshman forward Kristen Mann with 8:57 to play before halftime, the Gauchos went on an 18-6 run, and never let their lead dip into single digits the rest of the way.
Lisa Willett scored 11 of her career-high-tying 14 points in the opening half, just five days after being held scoreless in an 82-67 loss to seventh-ranked Purdue. Fourteen was a popular point total for UCSB's guards, as it was equaled by Hansen and freshman Mia Fisher. Three of Fisher's acrobatic baskets were scored during an 11-0 Santa Barbara spurt that put the contest out of reach after the Gaels had crept to within 68-55 with 6:43 left to play. Meanwhile Mann and senior forward Kayte Christensen both reached the 11-point plateau to give the Gauchos five players with double-figures. Christensen also grabbed 10 rebounds for her fourth double-double of the season and 19th of her collegiate career.
In addition to the standout offensive performances, Santa Barbara committed a season-low 15 miscues and recorded a positive assist-to-turnover ratio for the third straight game.
As she did in last year's victory over Santa Barbara, SMC senior center Jermisha Dosty registered a double-double, leading her squad with 12 points and 11 boards. While three other St. Mary's players reached double-digits, only one Gael shot 50.0% from the floor as the visitors connected at a collective 35.3% clip.
The Gauchos will enjoy an 11-day layoff before resuming non-conference play on Sunday, Dec. 30 at UNLV, where they will seek their first two-game winning streak of the season. The game in Las Vegas, Nev., will now begin at 4:30 p.m., after originally being scheduled for a 5:00 start.
