It’s no secret that the Long Beach State women’s basketball team has had its share of setbacks on the road, and Thursday night was no different.
The 49ers (8-20, 6-8 Big West Conference) squandered an eight-point halftime lead, and UC Santa Barbara (17-10, 10-4 Big West) snapped LBSU’s three-game winning streak with a 74-70 victory at the Thunderdome.
Trailing 61-58 with under five minutes to go, the Gauchos used a 10-2 run sparked by a straightaway 3 from Kelsey Adrian to take a five-point lead the ‘Niners would eventually erase.
LBSU forward Courtney Jacob keyed a 7-2 surge to even the game at 70 after she buried three consecutive shots — one of which was a baseline 3 to ignite the burst.
The Gauchos quickly responded on the ensuing possession as Emilie Johnson found Sweets Underwood for an easy layup to take a 72-70 edge with 27 seconds to go.
The 49ers then had one last opportunity to either win or tie the game. With six ticks remaining on the clock, LBSU kicked the ball out to Jacob in the key before she drove in for a layup that rattled in and out of the basket.
Underwood collected the miss and was immediately fouled. From there, she iced the contest by hitting two clutch free-throws as the Gauchos hung on for the win.
Jacob paced The Beach with 17 points on 7-of-12 from the field, including 3-of-4 from long distance. Ella Clark and Melanie Lisnock added 12 apiece on a combined 8-of-12 from 3-point range. However, the duo missed all 10 of their attempts from inside the arc.
Meanwhile, LBSU guard Brandi Henton scored 11 on 4-of-8 shooting and grabbed five rebounds.
UCSB guards Johnson and Adrian led the way for the Gauchos with 17 points each as they combined to hit 11 of their 21 shots — including 8-of-15 from long distance.
Meanwhile, reigning Big West Player of the Week Mekia Valentine was limited by LBSU to just four points.
Tied at 20, the ‘Niners broke the game open after stringing together an 10-2 run capped by a corner-3 from Jacob and a 15-foot jumper from Tipesa Moorer with 3:55 left in the half.
From there, Lisnock pushed The Beach’s lead out to 11 after she drained a 3 with 21 seconds remaining in the half.
The Gauchos then answered with a left-wing-3 from Nicole Nesbit to cut the deficit to 40-32 as the buzzer sounded to end the period.
Despite hitting a season-high 12-of-22 from 3-point range (54.5 percent), the 49ers shot a just 24-of-54 from the field (44.4 percent). Meanwhile, UCSB shot 48.1 percent (25 of 52), including 56.3 percent from 3-point land (9 of 16).
UCSB also dominated on the glass, out-rebounding LBSU, 38-28.
The Beach will return to Big West action Saturday as it continues its three-game road stretch in a 4 p.m tipoff against No. 1 Cal Poly (14-10, 10-3 Big West) at Mott Gym.
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