ANAHEIM – It’s tough to beat a team three times in a single season.
After sweeping UC Santa Barbara during the regular season, the Long Beach State women’s basketball team found that out as it suffered a 73-50 quarterfinal loss to the Gauchos in the Big West tournament on Thursday at the Anaheim Convention Center.
“I don’t think we did a good job in our rotations like we had in the first two times that we met,” 49ers head coach Jody Wynn said. “Santa Barbara is an incredible team and they’re kicking on all cylinders right now. Their point guard is phenomenal and their center is as good as it gets in our conference.”
Following a competitive first-half outing, in which LBSU trailed by just six at halftime, things didn’t go so well for the 49ers in the second half.
After a baseline jumper by junior Melanie Lisnock to open the half, UCSB went on a 9-0 run, extending its lead to 44-29 with 15:32 remaining.
The Gauchos continued to pull away, leading by as many as 30, largely in part to the 49ers’ inability to get their offense going.
Down 71-44, with 2:47 left to play, the ‘Niners didn’t give up.
The Beach closed out its season outscoring UCSB, 9-2, over the final minutes and with its five seniors on the court.
“I’m very, very proud of my kids, in particular, the seniors,” Wynn said. “They showed great leadership and they fought until the final buzzer and that’s what we’re all about.”
Senior Ally Wade contributed 10 points and five rebounds in the loss for The Beach, while Ashley Bookman added eight.
UCSB received 22 points from Meagan Williams, 18 from Emilie Johnson, along with 11 from Ariana Gnekow and Mekia Valentine.
Valentine, whose presence in the paint was undeniable, pulled down 19 rebounds – one shy of the tournament record.
LBSU made 6-of-31 (19.4 percent) shots from the floor in the second half, compared to UCSB’s 15-of-29 (51.7 percent) output. The 49ers shot just 1-of-9 (11.1 percent) from beyond the arc.
“We got the shots, we got shot attempts … It’s going to be very difficult for
us to beat a team shooting less than 20 percent in a half,” Wynn said. “It’s no secret if we shoot the ball well, we’re in games and if we don’t, we’re not.”
Bookman put The Beach on the scoreboard first after connecting on a 3-pointer to begin the contest.
LBSU took an early 11-6 lead after Wade drained a 3.
The 49ers led for most of the first half until Gnekow knocked down a 3-pointer for UCSB, tying the score at 19 apiece with 8:19 left to play.
After exchanging baskets to even things up at 21, UCSB outscored The Beach, 12-4, over the next six minutes to take an eight-point lead.
Senior guard Lauren Sims grabbed a steal with the shot clock turned off, and the 49ers held on to the ball for the last shot of the half.
Wynn instructed the rest of the ‘Niners on the floor to spread out and create a one-on-one situation for point guard Karina Figueroa, who waited until the clock read 10 seconds to make a move. Figueroa drove to the basket, did a spin move and scooped in a layup over two defenders as the buzzer sounded to close out the half with the 49ers trailing, 33-27.
Figueroa, who wrapped up her career at The Beach with an 18-point showing, went 6-for-23 from the floor in her final game.
“I don’t know, today it just wasn’t falling,” Figueroa said about her shooting performance.
LBSU made 11-of-27 (40.7 percent) field goal attempts during the opening period, including a 4-of-10 (40 percent) effort from 3-point range.
“Long Beach State had a tremendous year,” Gauchos head coach Lindsay Gottlieb said. “They have a lot of seniors that are terrific players. I’m just happy that we were able to come out on the positive end.”
Long Beach finished the season with a 13-17 overall record, including a 9-7 conference mark.
“There’s a lot of emotion going through my head right now and it’s hard to get words out to explain what they are,” a teary-eyed Sims said. “I think this was by far the best season, by far the most together team we’ve ever had in my four years here.”