SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The Pacific women's basketball team (6-1) used key playmakers off the bench and a momentum-shifting third quarter to edge out UC Santa Barbara (4-5) 63-53 Thursday evening at the UCSB Campus Events Center. Pacific improved to 6-1 for the second year in a row.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
First Half
- Pacific held Santa Barbara scoreless from beyond the arc through the first eight minutes.
- UCSB and the Tigers went back and forth with the largest lead of the first quarter going to Pacific, a five-point margin on a three-pointer from Kaylin Randhawa midway through the period. Randhawa finished with 13 points on 4-of-8 shooting and 4-of-5 from the free throw line.
- Pacific took a 17-14 lead into the second quarter thanks to two short-range buckets from Liana Tillman in the final minute.
- The Tigers shot 31 percent in the first 20 minutes to the Gauchos' 26, led by six from Tillman on 3 of 6 shooting.
Second Half
- Pacific held Santa Barbara scoreless for just over four minutes in the third quarter while making a nine-point run, five off the hands of Valerie Higgins to take a 35-28 lead.
- Randhawa hit a runner and completed the three-point play at the third-quarter buzzer to give Pacific its largest lead of the night at 44-32.
- Pacific's third-quarter was the difference maker with a stern 10-2 advantage in second-chance points and a 26-16 in points in the paint after three quarters.
- Callie Kaiser converted the three-point play with just over six and a half minute remaining to shift momentum back to Pacific with a 50-40 lead.
- Pacific led wire-to-wire in a crucial fourth quarter that saw the Tigers take control of the rest of the game despite a late surge from the Gauchos.
- UC Santa Barbara took its final lead of the night at the 7:30 mark of the third quarter before going cold for the next four minutes, thus starting Pacific's nine-point stretch that put them ahead for good.
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:
- Brooklyn McDavid kept up her streak of scoring in double figures in every game this season, tallying 14 Thursday night.
- Pacific held Santa Barbara out of the paint scoring-wise, winning the battle with a 30-18 advantage.
- Pacific's bench stepped up in a big way with eight of their 19 points in the second half, including six in the fourth quarter.
- Higgins led the Tigers in rebounding for the fifth game of the young season with 10 Thursday night, five on the offensive glass and five on the defensive. Thursday also marked the junior's third double-digit rebound total of the season.
- Randhawa was named City of Stockton Human Resources Hardworking Player of the Game after recording 13 points, three rebounds, two steals and two blocks.
WHAT COACH DAVIS SAID:
On the bench stepping up: "I thought our whole team, our bench brought some great energy coming off in the second half especially whether it was on the rebounding end, defensive end or putting a couple points in. We know we're going to be a much better team when we're about 10, maybe 11 (players) deep, so kudos to the bench for bringing that energy."
On the third quarter momentum: "I think this team has the ability to go on some scoring runs and score points in a hurry. We hadn't done that in the first half and we did some in the second half. The other key was that in the first half I think we were 30 or 40 percent from the free throw line and in the second half, we were 100. That helps us push that lead from a two-possession lead to a three- or a four-possession."
UP NEXT:
The Tigers will complete a short two-game road trip with a Saturday matinee at CSU Bakersfield. Tipoff from the Icardo Center against the Roadrunners is set for 1:00 p.m. with Don Gubbins on the call.
FOLLOW US:
For more updates and more information on the 2019-20 Pacific women's basketball team, be sure to follow @Pacific_Hoops on Twitter, @pacificwbb on Instagram and @PacificWomensBasketball on Facebook.
