BAYLOR JUST TOO MUCH FOR GAUGHOS

Too Strong, Too Fast, Too Tall of a Challenge For UCSB in NCAA Tourney

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            The Lady Bears of Baylor proved to be too strong of an opponent for the UCSB women’s basketball team on Sunday and the Gauchos could not pull off the rare upset over the No. 1 team in the NCAA Tournament. The 16th-seeded Gauchos fell behind early and never caught up.

Baylor maintained a double-digit lead for the entire second half and for most of the first half as they steam-rolled UCSB, 81-40, in the Des Moines Regional of the NCAA Tournament in Bowling Green, Ohio.

            It took only five seconds for the top-seeded team in the tournament to score as Baylor controlled the opening tip and Destiny Williams sank a jumper to earn a 2-0 lead.

They increased that lead to 12-0 nearly five minutes into the game before Kelsey Adrian found Kirsten Tilleman on an alley-oop pass and finish, giving UCSB its first bucket. Tilleman would score again, but Baylor answered and UCSB found itself in a 15-4 hole.

“Either you are going to play (Baylor center Brittney) Griner one-on-one and let her get her points, or you are going to ask them to make jumpers from the outside – and they did that,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said.

With the UCSB defense focusing on the 6-foot-8 Griner, Baylor hit a lot of open outside shots to earn a 23-7 lead half way through the first period even without the help of Odyssey Sims – Baylor’s usual starting point guard.

Sims, who’s a common scoring threat for the Lady Bears, had 10 points off the bench in what Baylor coach Kim Mulkey called a “coaches decision.”

            “She knows why she didn’t start,” Mulkey told the press after the game. “It’s not a big deal. Most coaches would have looked the other way, but it’s all about teaching kids lessons.”

            Baylor had five different players score in double figures on Sunday including Sims, Griner (14 points), Brooklyn Pope (13), Sune Agbuke (11) and Williams – who had 12 points on 5-for-5 shooting.

“It was definitely a different level (of competition),” senior guard Emilie Johnson said, “I think we all felt that tonight. To me, it was exciting to compete against this high level of competition and it makes me want more.”

            Johnson hit a bucket just before the halftime buzzer sounded to pull the Baylor lead to 46-16 at the break. Johnson would lead all Gauchos with 10 points, but only three came in the second half.

“Competing against the top team in the country, you need to hit your open shots,” Johnson said.

UCSB shot a measly 22 percent from the floor in the first half and the Gaucho offense struggled against the taller and faster Baylor defense. UCSB committed 16 turnovers including half a dozen shot clock violations leading to 24 points in transition for the Lady Bears.

“You almost have to play a perfect game and unfortunately for us, we didn’t make some shots early,” Mitchell said. “It’s just tough to recover with a team like that.”

Coming into the game, Griner was obviously the Gauchos number one priority. She averaged 23 points and 9 rebounds a contest and had gone over the 40-point plateau twice, but UCSB held her to just 14 total points and 3 rebounds.

“I think Tilleman did an amazing job on her,” Mitchell said. “Again, she’s 6-8 and Tilleman is 6-1 on a good day in her heels.

“I give our kids credit – no one gave in and even though she played 20 – 25 minutes, she still had to work hard for her 10 or 12 points.”

            Even without an explosive Griner, Baylor maintained at least a 30-point lead for the entire second half, partly because the Lady Bears kept scoring, but also because the Gauchos went scoreless for six and a half minutes half way through the second period.

Afterwards, Mitchell felt that her team could have just lost to the eventual national champion.

“They have all the elements in place to win a championship,” Mitchell said. “If they do, it will make me feel better about this loss.”

            The victory sets a Baylor school record for wins, breaking last season’s mark of 34. The Lady Bears have not lost since falling in the quarterfinals of last year's tournament to the eventual national champion – Texas A&M. They will face Florida on Tuesday night in the second round of the tournament. UCSB will head home for the offseason, optimistic about next year.

“They should be proud of the fact that at the end of the day they helped lead us to the NCAA and that’s the biggest legacy they could leave, Mitchell said about her two seniors Johnson and Adrian. “It leaves me excited for what is coming next year.”

            Johnson remains unsure of her future, but will face it like every other opponent she’s faced before – head on.

“At this point, I’m excited,” she said. “I know it is the end of my college career, but I’m looking at it at as a new beginning, a new chapter.”

UPSET IN THE MAKING? - #16 UCSB vs. # 1 BAYLOR

March Madness Takes A Hold of the Gauchos

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            After a record-setting first round of upsets in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, it’s the UCSB women’s basketball team that has taken notice. The Gauchos, who are the 16^th seed in the women’s tournament, flew to Bowling Green, Ohio on Thursday morning to prepare for their matchup today against the No. 1 overall team in the tournament – the Lady Bears of Baylor.

            “It’s March Madness and we are all watching the games and understand, ‘you just have to be the best team on that day,’” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said. “You always play to win, but also understand sometimes, even your best game may not be enough.”

            The Gauchos know they will need to play their best, or one of their best games of the season to defeat 34-0 Baylor.

No. 2 Connecticut nearly pulled that off in December. The Huskies led the Lady Bears by 11 points at halftime but could not maintain. The Lady Bears went on to win, 66-61 and no other team has come close to stopping them.

Luckily for the Gauchos, they may just be playing their best basketball of the season. They are on a four-game winning streak and have won nine of their last 11. Senior guard Emilie Johnson says everything is finally clicking.

            “I think, now, at this point of the season, everything is falling together at the same time,” she said. “Before, little pieces would work, but now we are where we want to be.”

            The Gaucho defense has been consistent for most of the year, holding opponents to 51.6 points per game, but it’s the offense that has improved recently. UCSB has scored 60 or more points in its last four games – a dramatic difference if you remember they were in the bottom 20 of 330 teams ranked nationally in offensive scoring heading into the last week of the regular season.

            “We might play our best game and still not win, but I want these kids to believe and enjoy the opportunity,” Mitchell said. “But, like somebody mentioned, if you can keep it close, anything can happen.”

            Keeping the game close will be difficult.

Although UCSB has become a better scoring team, they are nowhere close to the Baylor’s level. Johnson leads the Gauchos with 304 points this year, but the Lady Bears have three players over that mark.

Baylor guard Odyssey Sims and forward Destiny Williams combined to score 820 points this year – a mark close to Brittney Griner’s 793 points this season.

             “Destiny Williams always comes up big because Brittney Griner always demands a double or triple team, and then if Odyssey Sims is on, it's over with,” Mitchell said.

            The Gauchos are a 45-point underdog heading into Sunday, but Johnson says that’s been their role all year.

            “I think this year has prepared us for this moment because we have been the underdog all season in the Big West, which is not the position the Gauchos are used to,” she said. “Being the hunters and not the hunted has prepared us all through this year to just keep fighting and to have a mentality of never giving up.”

Tip-off will take place around 11:30 in California and will be aired on ESPN2.

The Gauchos are hoping the new shoes they were awarded for the tournament resemble a Cinderella glass slipper, while Mitchell concludes her pregame press duties by reminding fans to be optimistic, “Never count out Gaucho heart – anything can happen when you believe!”

GOIN' DANCIN' WITH A 6-FOOT-8 NIGHTMARE

UCSB Takes on the Best Team in the Nation in NCAA Tournament

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            It took a while to find out who the UCSB womens basketball team would play in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, but the foe is recognizable nationwide. While watching the ESPN selection show on Monday afternoon, the Gauchos discovered they will be playing the No. 1 team in the nation on Sunday afternoon in Bowling Green, Ohio – the Lady Bears of Baylor.

             “As bad and as ugly as we have looked this year, at the end of the day, our goal was to play in the NCAA Tournament and we’re here,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said. “It’s a great opportunity for these kids and it’s a great experience. We’re going to run with it. You never know.”

            UCSB enters as the 16^th seed in the Des Moines Region of the tournament after securing a Big West Championship victory over Long Beach State on Saturday. Baylor on the other hand, has had one of its best seasons in team history.

            The Lady Bears, who won the national championship in 2005 and were in the Final Four in 2010, enter the tournament with a perfect record of 34-0. They earned their second straight Big 12 Championship with a 23-point victory over rival school Texas A&M last weekend. They also have the No. 1 rated player in the nation – Brittney Griner.

            Griner is a 6-foot-8 junior who averages 23.3 points, 9.4 rebounds and 5.2 blocks per game and was named the ESPN.com national player of the year. She was also voted as the Big 12 Player of the year the past two seasons, and the league’s defensive player of the year for the third straight year.

            “It’s going to be a whole new definition of the triangle and two,” Mitchell said. “The three (defenders in the triangle) could be on Brittney (Griner) and the other two have to guard the other four (offensive players). We’ll see what we can come up with in the next couple of days.”

            One thing is for sure – Kirsten Tilleman will have her work cut out for her.

The Gaucho center stands at 6-2, but is very familiar with guarding taller players.

            “People have called me an undersized post player ever since I have come to college,” she said. “I think anyone is undersized to (Griner).

            “Everyone is just excited that we are going to the dance, and it’s definitely going to be a dance.”

            Tilleman, who earned the Big West Tournament MVP award, sat in the front row of Reitnouer Auditorium at UCSB on Monday for the selection show. Upon announcement, she turned her head and said, “I want to get a chance to guard her.”

            Tilleman was referring to Griner and her coach says that’s not unusual behavior from the junior out of Bozeman, Montana.

            “She’ll never back down from anyone, so it’ll be interesting,” Mitchell said. “We’ll come up with a gameplan and see if Tilleman can have some fun with it.

            “I have said it from day one, we go as Tilleman goes. I am thankful that she earned the Big West MVP because she is so deserving of it. It will be a challenge, but I know going onto the court that I feel good having her in my corner because I know she is not going to back down.”

Griner scored a tournament-record and career-high 45 points against Kansas State in the semifinals of the Big 12 Tournament and was named the tournament’s most outstanding player for the second straight year.

Briner almost has as many accolades as another Baylor Bear – the most recent Heisman trophy winner Robert Griffin III, but for Mitchell, it’s all about her team’s mentality, not accolades. She knows it’s one and done in the tournament and says that her team just needs to be the best team that night – maybe Baylor might even overlook UCSB.

“I always go in expecting to win,” Mitchell said. “It’s going to take an A plus game and a lot of other variables to fall into place for us, but you don’t just play to play. I don’t want the kids to go in with that mindset. If we can walk out of there and we’ve won in our minds, that will always be something to build on for the future of this program.”

CHAMPIONS!

UCSB Brings Home 14^th Big West Title With Win Over Long Beach

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            ANAHEIM – After traveling roughly 127 miles to the Pyramid on the Long Beach State campus back in the middle of January, the fans left that game in disbelief. The coach was questioned. After that game the players hurried off the court with heads hung and tears in their eyes. It was hard for anyone to find anything positive to write or say about the Gauchos after they were blown out in a midseason contest at Long Beach State.

Sitting at 7-9 overall and 2-3 in the Big West, UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell knew what no one else did: her team would win a Big West Championship.

 “Honestly I just think that set it up for a greater story,” senior Emilie Johnson said. “When we were at that low point, I never stopped believing. I knew this team could do something special.”

The Gauchos pulled off their miraculous run through the playoffs as they were the first sixth-seeded team in Big West Tournament history to win the championship. UCSB would defeat none other than Long Beach state in the title game, 63-54, on Saturday afternoon at Honda Center.

Mitchell told her team all year long that UCSB would find itself on top come March if they bought in and just believed.

“I let a smile out before the final buzzer sounded and a few tears in the locker room because only these ladies in our small group know what we have gone through this year,” Mitchell said. “Probably to the world, (they have done) the impossible, but to me, it’s everything I expected when I took this job.”

Mitchell expected it, but the 49ers still had a surprise or two up their sleeve.

The Gauchos jumped out to a 16-10 lead 12 minutes into the game as Melissa Zornig earned three of her 12 total points. Long Beach would respond with a 9-1 run capped by a Hallie Meneses layup on a baseline drive.

Mary Ochiltree gave Long Beach its first lead since the opening basket with a 3-pointer and the 49ers led 20-19.

There was just enough time left before halftime for UCSB to get two free throws from Kirsten Tilleman to take a 21-20 lead into the break.

            Both teams had trouble making shots in the first half combining to shot just 28 percent from the floor. Johnson and fellow guards Nicole Nesbit and Melissa Zornig, who combined for 63 points in Friday’s semifinals victory, were a combined 1-for-13 in the first half of Saturday’s game.

“She taught us to never give up, and I think that this moment, right now, has proved it,” Zornig said of Mitchell. “This whole season, when we went through bad times or good times, she never gave up on the team and that gives us respect for her.”

Both teams struggled to score to start the final period, but with 12:21 left Zornig gave the Gauchos a 33-26 lead with another 3. Tilleman then stole a pass and Nesbit was off and running for an easy two the other way.

Long Beach responded quickly as they went on a 13-4 run. Alex Sanchez, a member of the All Big West freshman squad, started the run with a layup and a 3. Meneses capped the run with a 3 and gave Long Beach a 39-38 lead.

Two possessions later, UCSB went to a play they have run countless times this season. A high pick and roll using UCSB’s only two seniors. Johnson found Kelsey Adrian for an open 3 to take a 43-41 lead. UCSB would not look back, outscoring Long Beach 20-13 in the final 7:20.

Tilleman led all Gauchos with 16 points and 11 rebounds with eight of those on the offensive glass. For her efforts, she was awarded the tournament MVP.

“I wasn’t even thinking about awards like that,” she said. “It’s really just a reflection of my teammates and coaches. They really make it possible for anyone to step up on any night.”

Tilleman helped the Gauchos hold the 49ers’ leading scorer Tipesa Moorer scoreless.

The win gave UCSB a 5-0 record against the 49ers in the Big West Title game and afterwards, Mitchell flashbacked on a long first season. Looking directly at UCSB athletic director Mark Massari, she answered his main interview question from May – ‘could she cut down nets?’

            “Hopefully I answered that question for you,” Mitchell told Massari 11 months later with a net around her neck.

            Some players cried, some fell to the floor, all rejoiced, but for Johnson, it was still all too surreal.

“I really feel like I have come full circle, starting in freshman year and then sitting here right now,” said Johnson, who is the only current player with a Big West Title ring – earned in her freshman year. “I just get the chills thinking about everything and then reaching this moment. It’s an incredible experience – we’re going to work hard, we’re going to enjoy it and we’re going to continue to play Gaucho basketball.”

POSTSEASON OF REVENGE

Record-setting night for UCSB in semifinals

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            Never underestimate an underdog. After losing the first four combined regular season matchups against UC Irvine and Pacific, the UC Santa Barbara womens basketball team earned some revenge when it mattered most – in the postseason.

The Gauchos, who entered the Big West Tournament as the No. 6 seed, showed fans what they have been waiting for all year as they set individual and team records in an 84-66 victory over No. 5 Pacific on Friday in the semifinals, advancing to the finals for the first time in three years.

“I am at a loss of words, which is rare for me,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said.

            Mitchell didn’t need to say anything though. She just let her team speak for her. UCSB scored a season-high 82 points thanks to career-high scoring outings from Melissa Zornig (23) and Nicole Nesbit (20). Emilie Johnson added 20 points with 10 points coming from the free throw line.

“You look at their height and maybe I am a point guard coach or a small guard coach,” Mitchell joked. “We had everyone under 5-foot-6 today with 20 points.

“It’s unheard of right? All year long I have heard how we win 50 to 49, and I’ve tried to convince everyone I am okay with 80, but the other team can only score 50, or I guess 79.”

            It’s Zornig who has surprised everyone but her coach this postseason. After scoring a game-high 15 points in a win over UC Irvine in the first round, the sophomore guard came off the bench against the Tigers and provided an instant offensive spark.

            “Coach Mitchell just told us to have an attack mentality,” Zornig said. “As of late, I think our team has done a really good job of attacking and either scoring or kicking it out.”

            Zornig and Nesbit both started the game on the bench, but just six minutes in, they were called upon.

Nesbit tied the game at 15-15 twelve minutes into the game with a transition jumper. On their next possession, Zornig gave the Gauchos their first lead since the opening basket with a layup. The Gaucho bench earned a total of 51 points in the game.

            “Coming off the bench you do have somewhat of an advantage,” Nesbit said. “You can kind of see how the team is playing. You can see if, maybe they are trapping, or maybe they are switching, and you don’t have to be on the floor to make those mistakes, because you can see it from the bench.”

            Erica McKenzie, who had a team-high 17 points for Pacific, tied the game at 21-21 with a 15-foot jumper with 7:18 left in the first half. UCSB would make 10 of their last 11 shots before halftime to take a 37-28 lead into the break – The Gauchos would not relinquish their lead in the second half. The 37 points was the second most points UCSB has scored in a first half this season.

            “We came in with a little bit of a chip on our shoulder,” Nesbit said. “Knowing how horrible it felt last year – to be at the top of the conference and lose to the last seed, on your home floor. So when we came out here, we knew we had to buckle down and play a solid 40 minutes to get the win.”

            The Gauchos would extend their lead to as much as 20 in the second half thanks to two free throws from Johnson. The senior was just 4-of-8 from the floor, but 10-of-12 from the charity stripe.

            “I am excited for her and (Adrian) to have a chance to play for a Big West Championship,” Mitchell said. “As seniors, they have meant so much to this program… It means everything to me, even though I have only had a year to coach them. Their teammates know that too, and we’re going to jump on their back and see how far they can take us.”

            The Gauchos shot an incredible 59 percent from the floor in the second half.

“They had fresh legs and they were just knocking down jumpers,” Mitchell said. “They were playing free and I have tried all year long to get them to buy into the fact that it’s in transition where we are best.”

            To some, the upset may be a surprise, but not to Zornig.

            “We knew we could beat them,” Zornig said. “We’ve known that all season and today was the day to beat them.”

            The Gauchos will try to earn their 14^th Big West Title in program history tomorrow at the Honda Center as they take on No. 7 Long Beach State. The 49ers pulled off a true shocker on Friday morning as they defeated No. 1 Cal Poly, 51-48. UCSB is 1-1 against Long Beach this season and is the highest seed left in the tournament.

            “We are going to have our hands full,” Mitchell said about the 49er’s athleticism. “Again, it will be the same mindset for coaches – a get after it, defensive mindset.”

            

THIS TEAM MAKES ITS OWN LUCK

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

Sure, it was lucky that Kassandra McCalister – the UC Irvine guard that torched the Gauchos for 57 points in just two games – did not start for the Anteaters in Tuesdays first round Big West Tournament matchup, but the UCSB womens basketball team knows that luck only carries you so far.

“She’s a great player, and I had a lot of sleepless nights after giving up 36 points to her last time,” UCSB head coach Carlene Mitchell said.

McCalister was held to a total of five points, partially because of her injuries, but mostly because of a stingy Gaucho defense.

“If you have someone harassing you as an offensive player it can make you a little hesitant and it can lead to unforced turnovers,” Mitchell said.

UCSB threw a posse of players at McCalister to limit her production. It worked and it helped the Gauchos earn a 61-51 victory to keep their season alive.

Mitchell is hoping once again, that the third time will be the charm today in the semifinals of the Big West Tournament as they play another team they have an 0-2 record against this season – Pacific.

“It’s perfect,” senior guard Emilie Johnson said. “This time of the year is really special. As a senior, you never know what tomorrow’s going to bring. I just have to live in the moment and do anything I can to help my teammates be inspired and play their hearts out.”

Pacific, the team that knocked UCSB out of the playoffs in the first round last year, came into the tournament as the No. 5 seed and earned an opening victory over No. 4 UC Davis on Tuesday.

“I am always confident, never too cocky,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell. “We don’t worry about, and you can’t worry about, who you play. Irvine got us twice, and around this time of the year it is one and done, so you better bring your best game no matter who you’re playing.”

Pacific, which handed UCSB its worse loss this season (60-40) a week ago in Stockton, averages almost 69 points per game, which is good for second in the Big West. Kendall Rodriguez leads the Tigers with 12.8 points and 7.9 rebounds per game.

“Whoever we’re playing is great, but at the end of the day it’s about us,” Johnson said. “We just have to do what we do best.”

For the Gauchos, what they do best is playing defense.

The UCSB defense, which allows a Big West-best 51 points per game, hasn’t had a problem shutting down Rodriguez. The Tiger Forward had only 14 total points in the two regular season matchups. It’s been the other Tigers that the Gauchos have struggled with.

In the first regular season matchup, UCSB gave up a game-high 14 points to Erica McKenzie, who scored seven of Pacific’s 12 points in the final five minutes to seal a 52-48 victory at the Thunderdome. In the second matchup between the teams it was Gena Johnson who led the Tigers with 17 points.

“It’s exciting that we get to play Pacific,” senior forward Kelsey Adrian said. “If you think about last year and what happened with them and even this year and how we didn’t beat them – it should be a good game.”

Last year’s season-ending loss to Pacific hasn’t been brought up by the team a lot this year, but it has been in the back of everyone’s mind these last two days.

“I am sure it will be brought up,” said sophomore guard Melissa Zornig who had a game high 15 points in the win over UCI. “But if anything, I think it will fire up the returners who were here last year. It was really upsetting – the whole team was really disappointed with that, so we’re excited to play them.”

Will UCSB finally overcome Pacific to earn a spot in the Big West Championship game? Only time will tell Mitchell says.

MOVING ON!

UCSB Punches Ticket to Anaheim with Victory at UCI

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

IRVINE – It looked bleak early, but it ended exactly the way they wanted – with a win. The third time was a charm for the UCSB womens basketball team as they earned a 61-51 victory over UC Irvine in the first round of the Big West Tournament on Tuesday night at the Bren Events Center to advance to the semifinals matchup against Pacific held in Anaheim on Friday.

            “I just know that I am used to playing in March,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said. “I don’t know any different since I don’t have anything to compare it to. I am used to playing in tournaments for one or two rounds. I am used to the NCAA (Tournament) and that’s what I expect.”

            Mitchell’s confidence carried over to the team, but not right away.

UCSB – which lost both regular season games to UCI – did not come out sharp despite knowing it was win-or-go-home. The Gauchos did not score a basket for the first six and a half minutes and committed eight turnovers.

            “I refused to go down that way,” Mitchell said. “That’s why I subbed the five (new players) in.… I’m proud of the second team for setting the tone for basically how we played the rest of the game.”

The substitution worked as UCSB forced 10 Anteater turnovers before halftime. After trailing 8-0, and 16-6, the Gauchos would go on a 14-4 run to tie the game with a layup from Melissa Zornig.

“In the beginning it just wasn’t very pretty,” senior Kelsey Adrian said. “A couple players stepped up, especially (Zornig) and we needed that.”

            Zornig had a game-high 15 points, but after she tied the game at 20-20, the Anteaters would respond. They took a 24-20 lead with a fast break layup from Methlyn Onogomuho.

UCSB would tie the game a minute later with a layup from Angelei Aguirre as she sank a baseline drive layup. UCI netted one more basket to take a 26-24 lead into halftime.

            “Because of my competitive nature, I just told them we are going to win,” Mitchell said to her team at the break. “There were small things and adjustments that I knew we needed to make, but at the end of the day I knew we were going to go to the Honda Center.”

            Despite shooting 52 percent from the field in the first half the Anteaters had only managed a two-point lead. Those shooting numbers fell in the second half. The Gaucho defense clamped down on UCI, holding them to just 30 percent from the floor in the second half.

            UCSB also shut down the Anteaters best scoring threat – Kassandra McCalister. The UCI guard had just two points in the first half and totaled just five points in the game on 2-of-7 shooting.

            “She really lit us up last game and we didn’t want to let her do that again,” Adrian said. “We just had to be physical with her and not let her get any easy shots.”

UCSB took its first lead of the game with 18:45 left thanks to a 3-point play from Sweets Underwood. That’s when Zornig took over.

The sophomore guard sank four consecutive baskets for the Gauchos to earn a 35-33 lead with 13:43 left. Two minutes later, Nicole Nesbit would come off the bench for UCSB and sank her only two buckets of the game to earn a 39-33 lead with 11:35 left.

            “On the offensive end of things we had balanced scoring, which helps, but it definitely wasn’t our best game,” Mitchell said.

            UCSB would earn its largest lead of the night – 11 points – with just 33 seconds left as Emilie Johnson made two of her eight free throws, all of which came with less than two minutes left.

            “It was a sigh of relief,” Johnson said. “I am excited for this team and I want to see more. I want to see my teammates cut down nets.”

            UCSB could get revenge against Pacific and they hope third time is the charm once again, but this time in the semifinals.

“We all hope we play them because we want to get them back,” Zornig said. “We know the last two times we played them we did not play our game and now, we’re finally coming together as a team. No matter who we get, we’re going to come out and fight and get the W.

PLAYOFFS: NOT JUST ANOTHER DAY AT THE OFFICE FOR GAUCHOS

UCSB Starts Big West Tournament at UC Irvine

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            Only time will tell if the third time is the charm for the UCSB womens basketball team. The Gauchos start the first round of the Big West Tournament tonight at 7 PM in Irvine against the Anteaters who swept UCSB twice in conference play this year.

            “It’s not another day at the office, you have to step it up another level,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said. “I already texted the team this morning to let them know that they’ll need to bring a whole different mindset today. I took this job expecting to win and I still expect to win.”

            Mitchell admitted that this season has not gone according to plan, but even after a sub-par regular season the team can make it count when it matters – the postseason.

            “My goal as a team is that we are peaking at the right time,” she said. “We’ve had our ups and downs as a team, that’s obvious, but it’s tournament time. We’re all 0-0. You just have to be the best team that night – that’s all that matters.”

            After being knocked out of the tournament in the first round by Pacific last season, seniors Kelsey Adrian and Emilie Johnson don’t want this season to end as abruptly.

“It’s been brought up,” said Adrian, referring to the Pacific loss. “It’s tough. We don’t want it to happen like that again. We were all upset that it was against Pacific and we had trouble against them this year.”

            After suffering the worst loss of the season to Pacific early last week, it was Johnson who responded – verbally.

“Emilie actually gave a good (speech) before the Davis game,” Adrian said. “It really hit home with me and I came out pretty pumped up.”

The speech helped Adrian record a game- and career-high 21 points against the Aggies in Saturday’s 60-56 victory.

            “She was just saying it’s one of those things where you look back as a senior and you know you only get one freshman year, you only get one sophomore year and you only get one junior year and senior year, you better make the most of it,” Adrian continued.

            After being named a second team All-Big West selection on Monday – the fourth award in as many years for the 5-foot-6 guard – Johnson’s says she is not yet satisfied.

            “I think individual awards often reflect the team,” she said. “Our focus right now is on (tonight).”

            Maybe Johnson will be able to look back on her awards and smile in time, but Mitchell helped put it in context for her right now.

“I think Emilie will understand that individual awards mean absolutely nothing if your team doesn’t win,” Mitchell said. “Emilie is a competitor and she’s really bought into this system. She understands her role on the team. She’s a great kid and I wish I could have her a couple more years, but we want her to go out with a bang.”

            The Gauchos will try to earn a first round victory over a team that has beaten them twice this season. The Anteaters are led by Kassandra McCalister who had a career-high 36 points in a 72-65 victory over the Gauchos two weeks ago at the Bren Center.

“Kassandra has exceeded everyone’s expectations this year,” UCI coach Molly Goodenbour said. “She has had to become a point guard even though she’s not a point guard. She’s had her best year in a while and I’m proud of her.”

            The Anteaters, who average 65 points per game, finished their regular season with a 65-60 overtime victory over UC Riverside to earn the third seed in the tournament and the teams best finish in a decade.

            “This is the first time going into the game where we feel confident enough to win this game,” Goodenbour said.

            UCSB used 6-2 center Kirsten Tilleman to guard McCalister last time the teams met, and Mitchell said she will be part of a barrage of Gauchos used to slow her down again.

“She’s a great player and she made a bunch of tough shots even if we contested them,” Mitchell said. “Hopefully we can do some things to shut her down, but it’s never the star player that hurts you, it’s the role players.”

McCALISTER LEADS UCI TO VICTORY OVER UCSB WITH 36 POINTS

A Special Night for The Anteater Leaves the Gauchos Heart Broken

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

IRVINE, CALIF.- It was an impressive performance for the 5-foot-9 UC Irvine senior guard playing in her last game in an Anteater uniform at home. Kassandra McCalister contributed half of her team’s 72 points, leaving UCSB heartbroken after a 72-65 defeat in Big West play.

“I think she is playing the best basketball of her career this year,” McCalister’s coach Molly Goodenbour said. “It had to be one of her best games because it came right after one of her worst.”

UCSB tried everything in their playbook to stop McCalister – who had a game- and career-high 36 points – including a tall wrinkle. Gaucho center Kirsten Tilleman, who has played with McCalister before when they both attended Oregon State, was matched up one-on-one with the point guard at the top of the key to try to slow her down.

“I asked who wanted to guard her at halftime and Tilleman said she wanted to – actually, she demanded it,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said. “She actually did an amazing job, but that made us give up other things, like rebounding.”

With their team-leading rebounder 15 feet away from the hoop, UCSB gave up 11 offensive rebounds to the Anteaters and UCI had 10 second chance points by halftime.

UCSB still had its chance to win.

After battling through a double-digit deficit for most of the second half, Tilleman finally netted a layup after two failed attempts to pull within one, 55-54 with 6:35 left in the game. Nine seconds later UCI responded.

Methlyn Onogomuho converted a fast-break layup to go back up by three. Tilleman would make one-of-two free throws on the next possession, and a minute later, Sweets Underwood made a layup to tie the game at 57. UCSB earned its first lead in the second half and its first lead since the 12:26 mark in the first half with a free throw from Angelei Aguirre.

UCSB did not hold on to it.

Ten seconds after gaining the lead, UCSB let it go, to no other than McCalister. She hit a 3-pointer to start a 12-0 run for the Anteaters. They would not relinquish the lead as they held on for the 72-65 victory.

“We just have nights when things work for you,” Goodenbour said. “The game is a lot easier when you make baskets. We didn’t do anything different, they just went in.”

A loss didn’t seem possible with the way UCSB started the game. The Gauchos had their quickest start in recent memory as they took a 12-7 lead in the first eight minutes thanks to two 3s from Kelsey Adrian.

Then everything fell apart.

UCI went on an 8-0 run and by halftime McCalister had 21 points – exactly how many she had in the entire game when these teams faced in January.

“When she got started, it was done,” Mitchell said. “We tried different defenses to get her off balance, or to not let her get touches, but you can’t win when someone’s making that many free throws and they’re converting your turnovers (into points).”

Overall, UCI had 27 points off the Gauchos’ 18 turnovers, and the Anteaters made 20-of-26 free throws in the game, including 15 from McCalister.

Despite shooting over 40 percent from the field in the game, UCSB goes home disappointed. The Gauchos fall to 11-14 overall and 5-7 in the Big West.

Tilleman led all Gauchos with 16 points, and nine rebounds. Underwood added 10 points and Aguirre had seven. Emilie Johnson, who only managed 16 minutes in the game finished with five points, but has six assists.

            “I went with the team that was clicking,” Mitchell said of Johnson’s absence in the second half.

In the end, the Anteater guards proved to be too much for UCSB to handle once again. In their first meeting, Anete Klintsone and McCalister combined for 27 points. On Saturday, they had 50.

UCSB will leave Irvine to play a two-game home stretch on Thursday and Saturday. Coach Mitchell hopes her players can bounce back.

“I told them, ‘It would be real easy to just hang it up now,’” she said. “They looked at me like I was crazy. They want to continue to fight.”

IN THE LIMELIGHT: GAUCHOS HEAD SOUTH TO IRVINE

UCSB Takes On UCI As Season Winds Down

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            A winning streak is hard to get started, let alone keep alive. Just ask UCSB womens basketball coach Carlene Mitchell. The Gauchos have been up and down this year, but they are starting to get into a rhythm offensively and their defense is as good as ever. That defense helped the Gauchos earn their longest winning streak of the season (3 games) on Thursday night with a win over UC Riverside. That’s when the realization set in that the Gauchos hold their destiny in their own hands.

            With each win the Gauchos earn in their final six games of the season, UCSB will move into a better position for the Big West Tournament. By sweeping Cal State Fullerton and UC Riverside, UCSB is almost a lock for the eight-team playoff in three weeks. The Gauchos, who are currently third from the bottom in the conference, have only beat one team above them – league-leading Cal State Northridge in double-overtime back in January – but as the schedule moves into rematches, the Gauchos can earn some revenge.

            “It’s not about revenge,” Mitchell said. “It’s about wins and losses. UC Irvine is stuck in the logjam that is the Big West just like everyone else. They have been up and down this season – winning home games, losing their road games. I just tell the kids to continue to worry about us, and to just do what we’ve done all year long, and that’s play good defense.”

            That defense went to work against the Highlanders on Thursday night. UCSB held UCR to just 12 points at halftime, the fourth-best mark in team history.

            That same kind of defensive intensity will be needed today against the Anteaters. Last time the teams faced, UCI took a quick 7-2 lead. The Gauchos would earn the lead back and took a 22-21 lead into halftime, but never felt in control. The Anteater guards combined for 27 points and over-powered the Gaucho guards en route to a 61-53 win at the Thunderdome.

“They’re an extremely athletic team,” Mitchell said. “To be truthful, I don’t think we ever had control of that game.

“They create some mismatch problems for us. Their guards are bigger than ours and we need to do a better job of keeping them out of the paint.

The Anteaters are averaging over 65 points per game, but rank dead last in scoring defense – giving up 69 points per game.

            “We just need to show up and play our game,” Melissa Zornig said. “We did that (against UCR) and that helped our confidence.”

            UCSB has turned it around on offense and in the last four games they are scoring an average of 53 points per game, leading to a 3-1 record.

            “We’re just getting into a flow on offense,” Zornig said. “We know when to take shots and we’re making them. It’s led to a lot more confidence for the team.”

            A win today would bump the Gauchos back up to a .500 record in the Big West at 6-6, and coach Mitchell knows the significance of each remaining game.

            “There is no way we are overlooking anyone,” Mitchell said. “As a staff and a coach, I can’t allow that to happen. Our kids are smart enough to know that we can’t allow that to happen.”

KNOCKING OFF THE BEST

UCSB blows nine-point second half lead, but wins in double-overtime

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            It took the Gaucho offense everything they had to manage a win on the road against the best in the Big West and it took longer than normal too. They scored a season-high 71 points thanks to ten extra minutes of play as they knocked off conference-leading Cal State Northridge, 71-67 in double-overtime at the Matadome.

The Gauchos used a 10-0 run in the first half to secure a seven-point lead at halftime. That led to a nine-point lead in the second half, but it wasn’t enough. With just 2.7 seconds remaining in regulation Matador freshman Jessica Duarte hit a miraculous shot from beyond the arc to tie the game at 50 and send the game to the first overtime period. The ball hit off the front of the rim and the backboard before touching the net.

“When you get to that point you become a cheerleader almost,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said. “You have to make sure that they know you think they’re going to win, especially when they’re tired.”

            It would take a not-so-lucky-but-rather-skilled shot from UCSB senior forward Kelsey Adrian to send the game to double-overtime.

“The fact that (my teammates) trust me to take that shot is a big deal,” Adrian said. “They know that I’m going to knock it down. As a shooter you think the ball is going to go in. It doesn’t matter if it’s the first shot of the game or if you need a 3-pointer to tie the game up.”

Adrian, who led the team with 17 points and added 8 rebounds, was passed the ball with two seconds left on the shot clock as she elevated and connected on her third 3-point shot of the game to tie it at 58.

            Double-overtime was all about the Gauchos’ unsung heroes.

Thirty seconds into double-overtime, Adrian would give UCSB a 60-58 lead with a layup in traffic. CSUN guard Janae Sharpe tied the game at 60 with a layup in transition. Two minutes later, Melissa Zornig hit a 3-pointer to give UCSB a 63-60 lead. That’s when things got tricky for the Gauchos.

            Matador guard Haley White went to the post to earn back-to-back buckets for CSUN, giving them the lead, 64-63. With 45 seconds left, Nicole Nesbit did what she does best. She drove the ball to the left side of the paint, stopped, and pulled up for a mid-range jumper. It hit nothing but net.

“I’m extremely proud of Nicole because she is coming out of her comfort zone, which is kind of a quiet, take-the-back-seat (approach),”Mitchell said. “I just tell her she has to play like my personality. Off the court she doesn’t have to be as crazy as I am, but on the court she has to bring that feistyness.”

Now the Gauchos needed a stop.

            White was back in the post and was guarded by Emilie Johnson. The Matadors were trying to get her the ball as Ashlee Guay lobed a pass her way. The ball was tipped and Adrian needed an acrobatic tiptoe on the baseline to keep the ball alive and give the Gauchos possession with a one-point lead and only 18 seconds left. The questionable no-call upset CSUN coach Jason Flowers who stomped up and down on the court, costing him a technical foul and a chance for the win.

“(The out-of-bounds call) could have gone either way, honestly,” Adrian said about nearly being out-of-bounds. “The refs decided to call what they did, but I can see why their coach would have been upset.”

            The technical sent Johnson to the line and she knocked down both free throws.

“(The referees are) humans, and they’re going to make errors whether or not it was a bad call,” Mitchell admits. “There were twenty other questionable calls throughout the rest of the game. It’s like I told my team, ‘you don’t win or lose with that call, or the twenty others.’”

UCSB would retain possession and Johnson would be sent to the line again. She gave UCSB a 69-64 lead with 13 seconds left and the Matadors were all but done. Johnson went 8-for-8 from the line in the game including the last six UCSB points.

            “Late in the game we knew we had to get the ball in either Emilie’s hands or Nicole’s hands,” Mitchell said.

            The win bumps UCSB to 3-3 in the Big West and drops the Matadors to 5-2. The win wasn’t lost on Mitchell, who knows how badly her team needed this win.

            “It was critical,” Mitchell said. “There’s no doubt about it. I told the team, ‘one more loss and we might not have a chance to win the conference.’ That’s just being honest and realistic. I’m always going to be up-front with them.”

            The Gauchos will now face a very tough conference schedule next week at home. They play UC Davis and Pacific who have a combined record of 22-14.

Gauchos In Need Of Monumental Win Today Against Big West’s Best

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            It’s said that a good defense can play well at home or on the road. That’s because offenses can have a poor shooting day, or commit careless turnovers, but defense is a mentality. The Gauchos know they need to bring their best defensive performance today against Cal State Northridge because their offense has proven to be lackluster as of late.

 “For us, it feels like something natural,” sophomore guard Nicole Nesbit said about the team’s defensive intensity. “Since day one, when coach Mitch got here, it’s been about defense.”

            That philosophy has paid off. The Gauchos have the best defense in the Big West, giving up just 47.8 points per game – 14 points less than the next best defense.

            “The way coach Mitch prepares us for a team is very effective,” senior forward Sweets Underwood said. “We hit all the spots that we need to, so that we’re familiar with a team. Whether it’s a day or four days, going into the game we feel very well prepared.”

            UCSB had a one-day turn-around yesterday after a disappointing 46-34 loss at Long Beach State on Thursday night. They now have to travel just over 89 miles south to take on the Matadors.

             “They are very athletic but very young – five of their starters are freshmen,” UCSB assistant coach Natalie Jarrett said. “It’s going to be pretty similar to UC Irvine. They are going to try to open up gaps and penetrate those gaps.”

            The Matador guards like to spread out the defense then drive the lane and get to the free throw line. And when they get to the line, they make opponents pay. They have already converted 285 out of 394 free throw attempts this season. That’s a  .723 percentage, but UCSB knows a thing or two about making free throws. They lead the Big West with a .746 average, but they don’t get to the line enough and have just 146 attempts in 16 games this season.

            “We just need to take care of business, because we know this team could be great,” Nesbit said.

            The silver lining in the loss to the 49ers was the second half play of Nesbit. She scored seven of her team-high 11 points and recorded two steals. But Nesbit can’t do it alone. After scoring a combined 31 points against UC Riverside at home last week, Underwood and Kelsey Adrian went scoreless on Thursday.

            “I can’t even spell consistency with that, can I?” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said. “It’s hard to win games unless you have three players in double figures. The basket tended to get smaller after every miss.”

            It was hard for the Gauchos to get anything going on offense and they mustered a cold 27.8 shooting percentage two nights ago. They may have been able to get away with a night like that against the Matadors last year as they finished with just a 4-26 record. Yet, thanks to their newcomers they lead the conference this year with a 5-1 record.

            “We know they are a different team from last year,” Nesbit said “Everyone is a different team from last year. We don’t really know what to expect.”

            The Gauchos spent all of yesterday studying film and learning what the Matadors do well, and Nesbit admits those one-day study sessions can be tedious.

            “It is kind of difficult with a one-day prep, whereas you had three or four days to prepare for the team before, but it’s just like any other game, pretty much,” she said. “You get into practice – you need to get after it, learn what this team is good at, and focus on that team. It’s a complete shift the day after a game – you focus on the next team and just keep going.”

           

UCSB Left Disappointed After Blow Out at Long Beach State

STEVEN WILSON

News-Press Correspondent

            After a convincing 20-point victory over UC Riverside last weekend at home, the Gauchos were ready to take some of that momentum on the road Thursday night at Long Beach State. It took nearly the entire game, but the Gauchos got it done. They weren’t going for the win though, that was long lost as the 49ers blew out the Gauchos, 46-34. They were instead trying to score more than 33 points to avoid their lowest scoring total in team history.

            “It’s disappointing,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said. “We went into the game talking about consistency, and a sense of urgency. We had a great shoot-around, but truly as a coach, it’s hard to judge kids. I thought we were focused and ready to play. It’s just in the beginning of the game the starters didn’t do what I asked them, which is setting the tone on both ends of the court.”

            The Gauchos, who never earned a lead in the game, were scoreless for the opening three minutes and found themselves down, 6-0. By halftime that lead was at ten, and it was like there was a lid covering the rim on UCSB’s side of the court.

Out of the 10 players who entered the game for the Gauchos, only three of them made a basket before the half, and no one had made more than two.

            “For the most part tonight, I thought the right people we taking the shots,” Mitchell said. “I think we took good shots, and I think we have a better understanding of our offense. We just couldn’t get them to fall.”

Three Gaucho stars contributed to the shooting woes as Kelsey Adrian, Emilie Johnson and Sweets Underwood combined, shot 0-for-12 from the floor before halftime.

            “I think we did a nice job defensively tonight,” Long Beach State coach Jody Wynn said. “We gave up too many offensive boards, even though I think we were positioned correctly on defense.”

            The Gauchos had managed five offensive rebounds in the first half, but had only two second-chance points. Overall, they were shooting a miserable 20 percent from the field on 6-of-29 shooting.

            “We were getting all the shots that we wanted – layups, 10, 15-footers, but they just weren’t going in,” sophomore guard Nicole Nesbit said. “I think, for us, that was hurting us more mentally. It wasn’t anything Long Beach was doing, it was us killing ourselves.”

            The Gauchos would not post any significant comeback in the second half and continued to struggle to make shots. They fell behind by 13, then by 16, then even by as much as 19.

            “It felt like we were fighting,” Nesbit said. “We would scramble and scramble. We’d get a trap, we’d get a tip, then they’d grab it and get a three. We would try to get a rebound and it would slip off someone’s hands and they’d be right there to get a wide-open layup.”

            Nesbit who led the team with 11 points was the only bright spot for UCSB in the second half.

            “I was just trying to do my best to motive my team,” she said. “It’s hard when you come out of halftime and you’re down 10. It’s hard to get out there and play with the same kind of fight when the game was 0-0.”

            Even though they held the 49ers to 46 points – a much lower number than their average of 65 – the Gauchos offense would not let them catch up.

            “At some point you have to have the focus to knock down the easy, wide-open shots,” Mitchell said. “I’m sorry, but you’re a Division-I athlete.”

            UCSB will need to get over this loss quickly as they face one of the best teams in the Big West, Cal State Northridge, on Saturday.

            “We just need to use this game as fuel to the fire so to speak,” Nesbit said. “To me, this was embarrassing. We knew we were prepared, but this kind of effort was hard, it was just hard. We have to let this one go and give all we have to Northridge.”

Bumpy Road Ahead: UCSB Faces Two Tough Tests This Week

Steven Wilson

News-Press Correspondent           

            It won’t get any easier anytime soon for the 7-8 Gauchos. With two critical Big West matches this week – the second being against the Big West conference leading Cal State Northridge – UCSB is preparing for a long haul.

            “I think every game at this point is a critical, must-win game,” UCSB center Kirsten Tilleman said. “We can’t overlook a single team.”

            That mindset will be key this week. They may face a much better team on Saturday, but the Gauchos’ game tonight against the Long Beach State 49ers will be equally, if not more, important.

            “We have to go in, number one, expecting to win, but also knowing that Long Beach is a much better team at home,” UCSB coach Carlene Mitchell said. “I know they just had a rough stretch on the road, but that’s been a commonplace in the Big West right now – win at home. So, for us to have a chance to win this conference, we have to win on the road.”

            After winning two conference games at home against UC Riverside and UC Irvine, the 49ers dropped three games in a row on the road – all to Big West opponents, but as Mitchell pointed out, that’s been the norm. Long Beach State is just 1-9 on the road, but 6-2 at home, while the Gauchos are 5-3 at home and just 2-5 on the road.

            “Any team that’s playing on the road (can struggle),” Tilleman said. “You’re not in your home environment, and you’re in a, sometimes even hostile environment, and you really need to come together as a team and draw energy from within. That’s something that, even at home, we’ve been struggling to do, because at home we have the fans for (energy), but we don’t necessarily have that on the road.”

            The Gauchos have fallen behind early in many of their road games, and Tilleman says it’s not really anything they do on offense, opposed to what they should be doing on defense.

“It would be ideal to come out and have a lot of offensive fire, but a lot of the momentum that we get as a team is from the defensive end,” Tilleman said. “We want to focus on ourselves. A lot of the games we have played have come down to how we play – it’s not about the other uniforms, it’s about coming together as a team.”

            It’s been a routine this year – each player knows their responsibility and what they need to do to help their team. It then comes down to execution.

            “We all know our roles and the importance of every game,” Tilleman said. “My role, as in every game, is to do the little things and play as good of defense as possible, and be available and a presence on offense as well.”

            Tilleman’s role this week, as well as the rest of the post players for the Gauchos, will have a significant impact on the outcome of the game. The 49ers use a four-guard and one power-forward lineup and they have a tendency to clear out the middle and play one-on-one in the post.

             “They’re basically playing four guards, and that sometimes gets us in trouble,” Mitchell said. “We’ll give them different looks and hopefully we can press a little quicker to slow up the tempo of the game.”

            The 49ers also like to switch up their defensive scheme each series, switching from multiple zone defenses to man, to a press.

            “I don’t want that to hinder our lack of scoring ability at times,” Mitchell said. “So that’s what we’ll focus on: identifying what defense they are in.”

            The offense and specifically the guards will need to be ready for any defense they see. They will also have the ability to change the play if they don’t like what they see on the court.

            “They’re throwing anything and everything at you to throw you off,” sophomore guard Nicole Nesbit said. “So we don’t know what it’s really going to be like, but we’re going to be ready for everything.”