FULLERTON —UC Santa Barbara surged out of a halftime break to score a breakout women’s basketball victory at Cal State Fullerton on Thursday.
The Gauchos tied a program record by scoring 33 points in the third quarter to break loose for their 80-56 victory.
“This may have been our most complete game of the season,” coach Renee Jimenez said. “We need to continue to carry this momentum into our next four games.”
The 33 points match the previous mark set against Bethesda on Dec. 21, 2021. They broke the Gaucho record for a quarter against an NCAA Division 1 opponent which it set by scoring 32 against UC Riverside on Feb. 4, 2018.
UCSB (15-11, 9-7 Big West Conference), which scored only 28 points in the first two quarters combined, exploded for 52 in the second half while making 9-of-15 three-pointers.
Senior guard Alyssa Marin led the way with 4-of-5 threes and 18 points.
She’s averaged 17 points over the last three games, shooting 50% overall and 57.1% from three, after having scored at just a 6.7-point clip in the previous three games.
The Gauchos took a 16-8 lead by the end of the first quarter after holding the Titans (7-19, 5-11) to 3-for-15 shooting.
“I thought our team came out with great intention on the defensive end of the floor,” Jimenez said.
UCSB was held to 4-for-14 shooting in the second quarter but still led 28-22 by halftime.
Olivia Bradley scored eight of her career-high 14 points in the first half. Her previous high of 12 points came in Saturday’s game against UC Riverside.
Anya Choice got the Gauchos rolling in the third period by scoring all seven of her points in the first 3½ minutes.
Skylar Burke hit back-to-back threes while on her way to scoring 12 points in the quarter. She finished with 17.
The victory keeps UCSB on the heels of fifth-place Long Beach State (13-11, 9-6) in the Big West race. The Gauchos will play host to The Beach on Saturday at 4 p.m.