Friend turned foe — and vice versa — in UC Santa Barbara’s shockingly lopsided, 92-48 women’s basketball victory over Seattle University on Monday.
Sophomore transfer Nicole Steiner joined forces with Zoe Borter, the UCSB basketball senior she helped vanquish twice last year, in a showdown with her old coach at the Thunderdome.
Their combined 37 points helped to hand John Bonner, formerly of the Fullerton Titans, his first defeat with Seattle.
“We were all super-excited for this game … just because we all have a lot of history with him,” Steiner said.
She and Bonner both left Fullerton last spring after the Titans enjoyed their winningest Big West Conference season (13-7) since 1991.
Two of their victories came over UCSB by a combined total of just three points.
“I talked to him a bit before the game … asked how he was doing,” Steiner said. “He said he was very prepared and excited for this game, and I was too, but I didn’t want to say too much.”
Her play spoke volumes.
Steiner, who took just four shots combined in her first two games as a Gaucho, made the first three baskets for either team on Monday enroute to a 15-point, six-rebound performance.
Her first field goal came after she rebounded a game-opening miss by Borter, the player she guarded in last year’s Big West Conference games.
“I was like, ‘OK, I got started early,’ and that kind of helped fuel more of them,” Steiner said. “I just got a lot of O boards and good looks from my teammates.
“And I really, really wanted this game to be good for myself and my team.”
Borter missed only one other shot Monday, finishing 8-for-10 overall and 6-for-6 from the three-point line while leading all scorers with 22 points.
The 6-foot senior captain is 9-for-10 from three this season after ranking 29th nationally last year with a percentage of 40.9%.
“She’s just got it dialed in,” UCSB coach Renee Jimenez said. “She’s worked really hard at it.
“She used to have this really high-arcing three — it kind of felt like it’d touch the top of the T-Dome — and we’ve been able to kind of bring that down.
“But now she knows immediately after a miss what her adjustment needs to be, so we don’t mess with her.”
UCSB (3-0) is shooting 50% from three this season as a team after Monday’s 12-for-26 performance.
“I’ve never been on a team where my teammates can shoot threes and I can just turn around and start going back on defense,” Steiner said. “That is really nice.
“I think Zoe went 6-for-6, right? … so she’s amazing.
“We just have so many people who can put the ball in the hoop, so it’s just so hard to scout us.”
The Redhawks (2-1) have used a fierce, full-court press to average 10 steals in their first two games — a one-point win at New Mexico and a 25-point rout in Seattle over UC Riverside.
But they had just one steal — and a 47-24 deficit — by Monday’s halftime.
“I’ve played against John Bonner for 15 years, and so I’ve been on both ends of it,” Jimenez said. “I’ve had teams like this that didn’t let it faze them and handled it really well.
“I’ve also had teams where it just feels like they’re everywhere on top of you.”
Maddie Naro, UCSB’s senior point guard, solved Seattle’s press early and often to set up transition baskets. She had six assists and just two turnovers while scoring 11 points.
“I think you see a different poise about Maddie being a senior this year,” Jimenez said. “I’m pretty sure that last year against Fullerton, those numbers were heavily reversed.
“It’s always different when you play against that press the first time.
“The third time was a charm, I guess.”
Naomy Zonzon-Huyghe, a transfer from UC Irvine, thrived in UCSB ‘s press offense. She scored eight of her 16 points in the first seven minutes to send the Gauchos out to a 19-4 lead. She also had five assists.
“I haven’t figured out how to totally describe Zonzon yet, but she does give us a certain confidence,” Jimenez said. “She has a just a positive arrogance about her, and she is the best teammate.
“She is such a great motor and is just that kid who’s willing to do the dirty work, rebound, take charges, get her hands on things, and just bring an exciting, exciting game.”
UCSB extended its lead to 29-8 by the end of the first quarter after a pair of three-pointers by Borter and another by Mauriana Hashemian-Orr.
The Gauchos shot 75% in the first quarter (12-for-16) while out-rebounding Seattle 10-2.
Cristina Jones, a star forward that Bonner brought from Fullerton, scored 20 points but was limited to just three rebounds.
The Redhawks out-rebounded their first two opponents by a 14.5 margin, but UCSB took control of the backboards on Monday, 36 to 27.
The Gauchos also out-shot them 59.3% to 32% for the game.
Karisma Flores scored 10 points with a pair of three-pointers while freshman Charlotte Lipkin also made two of the long shots.
UCSB sank a school-record 264 three-pointers last year but is on a pace to break that mark this season.
“It’s a testament to Maddie and Mauriana just hunting windows,” Jimenez said. “Having two point guards on the floor sometimes really helps.
“We talk a lot about red shot versus green shot, and what’s the next best one we can get.
“Getting 21 assists on 35 field goal makes today is pretty impressive, just the unselfishness of the group.”
UCSB will try to shoot down another undefeated team when California (3-0) visits the Thunderdome on Saturday at noon. The Bears routed Long Beach State 100-46 and also own victories of more than 20 points over Washington State and USF.
“It’ll be a tough game — they’re a good team and they have one of the best guards in the country right now, Lulu (Twidale),” Jimenez said. “But I think we have a good scout in place that we’ll start working on.
“Obviously, we’re going to have to rebound the way we did tonight because they’re going to be big and athletic … and we’re going to have to make shots.”