Lauren RabainoCal Poly women’s basketball team lost its first game in the last seven contests as UC Santa Barbara outscored the Mustangs 66-62 in front of a record-setting crowd that filed into Mott Gym Saturday night.
In what proved to be a back-and-forth scoring affair with nine lead changes, the Mustangs (15-8, 7-4 Big West Conference) came within a 3-point shot of claiming the victory over the first place Gauchos (16-7, 11-0).
Despite being down 59-51 with less than two minutes left to play, the Mustangs battled back into the game behind senior guard Lisa McBride and senior forward Megan Harrison, both of whom had 18 points. McBride also had 10 rebounds on the night, giving the Mustangs two double-double performances in back-to-back games (Harrison went for 18 points and 10 rebounds against Cal State Fullerton).
McBride shot 6-of-10 from beyond the arc, but no 3-pointer she made was bigger than the sixth. With 45 seconds left to play in the game, she put Cal Poly within two points. The game-changer followed a Harrison steal, of which she had a game-high four, off a Gauchos inbounds pass.
On the very next play, Gauchos senior guard Lauren Pederson, who is the conference’s leading free-throw shooter, was put to the line. She converted both free throw attempts, keeping the lead within two scores from the Mustangs with 40 seconds left to play.
However, the Mustangs responded. Harrison came through with a momentous 3-point play that brought the game back within reaching distance as the Gauchos lead shrunk to 63-62 with 20 seconds remaining.
Cal Poly fouled on the next play, putting Gauchos freshman guard Emilie Johnson to the courtesy line. The plan worked as Johnson only converted one of the two freebies, giving the Mustangs an opportunity to win the game with a final shot.
Of course, the plan was to go to the hot hand for the win so McBride was fighting to get open as the ball was brought up the court. She evaded the defense to find her spot in the corner and the ball was thrown her way. She caught and fired, but the shot fell just short, hitting the front of the rim. The Gauchos swarmed to the ball and controlled it with seven seconds remaining, securing the victory.
“We were heartbroken,” Harrison said of the mood in the locker room following the game. “We tried so hard and it’s so frustrating when you give everything that have for it. We fought. You have to give it to us for that. Lisa’s shot was amazing. We all thought it was in and I’m so happy that she was the one to take the shot at the end of the game.”
With all the shots that McBride made, none of them will be remembered more by the player than the shot that didn’t fall. However, she will try to forget about it, she said.
“I felt good and I should have followed my shot, because it came right back to where I was standing, but I can’t remember the last shot that everyone is going to,” McBride explained.
The 1,737 in attendance provided the largest crowd to ever witness a home women’s basketball game in school history. They were treated to a close contest that would see neither team lead by double-digits.
The Mustangs never exceeded the four-point lead they got over the Gauchos within the first 5:15 of the game.
Santiago, who only had five points and a single rebound in the first half, came out hot in the second. She scored 15 points and grabbed seven rebounds after the intermission, keeping her streak of double-digit scoring games alive at 18.
Santiago’s quiet first half proved to be critical as Cal Poly’s attack in the post was limited and kept the Mustangs off the line and the Gauchos out of foul trouble.
The Mustangs went to the line only nine times Saturday, while UC Santa Barbara got to the line 27 times, accounting for 19 of their points.
“We needed to attack more and get to the free-throw line more and to at least, if nothing else, put them in foul trouble,” Mimnaugh said.
UC Santa Barbara senior center Jenna Green led all scorers with 23 points. She also had a game-high 12 rebounds.
This was the second time the Mustangs fell to the Gauchos this season. Earlier in the year, the Mustangs led the Gauchos at Santa Barbara by a score of 29-17 at intermission before being outscored by 22 points in the second half and handing the Gauchos a 55-45 victory.
“This one hurts a lot more, because it was right there,” McBride said. “Whereas the other one, we let go and lost by ten, this one we thought the whole time we were going to win.”
The Mustangs will have to wait until their next game at University of Pacific to try to get their 16th win, which will ensure their first winning season since 1991-92.