Nov. 28, 2003
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - When the going gets tough, the tough get defensive.
Trailing by eight points five minutes into the second half Friday night, the 16th-ranked UC Santa Barbara women's basketball team rallied for a 70-59 victory over Illinois in the Thunderdome.
Senior center Lindsay Taylor scored a game-high-tying 20 points as the Gauchos improved to 4-1 overall and extended the nation's second-longest home winning streak to 27 straight contests. Meanwhile the Illini (1-2) became the 108th consecutive UCSB opponent to shoot worse than 50% from the field, connecting at a 39.6% clip.
UCSB opened an early 8-0 advantage, thanks to back-to-back three-pointers from April McDivitt and Taylor followed by a layup from Brandy Richardson. However Illinois took its first lead at 12-11, and then went into the locker rooms with a 32-30 advantage when senior Aminata Yanni buried one of her three first-half three-pointers with just 20 seconds remaining. The visitors shot 46.7% over the first 20 minutes, compared to 38.5% by Santa Barbara
UI then scored five straight points to commence the second half, and amassed its largest cushion at 46-38 following a pair of Cindy Dallas free-throws at the 15:07 mark. At that point, the Gauchos embarked on a 19-4 run spanning 10 minutes, during which Taylor scored seven consecutive points for the home team. Illinois netted just one field goal over the final five minutes, and UCSB's lead grew as wide as 14 points when Taylor buried a baseline jumper with 1:27 to play.
McDivitt made four-of-eight three-pointers and finished with 16 points - her highest total as a Gaucho - while junior forward Kristen Mann amassed her second double-double of the season with 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. She and Taylor also dished off five assists apiece. Junior guard Mia Fisher rounded out the list of Santa Barbara's double-digit scorers with 12 points, which included her first three-pointer since the 2001-02 season. The Gauchos made half of the 32 field goal attempts in the second period, shooting 44.8% on the evening.
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Meanwhile the Illini struggled with their shot after halftime, with the exception of junior guard Tiffanie Guthrie who finished with 20 points and also hauled down a team-best nine boards. Yanni scored all 15 of her points in the first half and was limited to just two shots following the intermission. The visitors also hindered their effort by committing 18 turnovers.
UCSB will now take a 15-day break from competition before a Dec. 14 game at Florida, while Illinois plays at UCLA this Sunday at 1:00 p.m.
