Dec. 15, 2001
FRESNO, Calif. - Junior forward Tammy Annas led the Santa Clara University women's basketball team for the second straight game, this time a 17-point effort as the Broncos defeated Fresno State 75-65 in non-conference action this evening at the North Gym.
With the victory, SCU improves to 7-2 on the season. Fresno State takes its first loss at home on the year and falls to 5-4.
"We did start off just a tiny bit slow, right off the bat, but overall, we played okay in the first half. We just missed some shots we're accustomed to making," Santa Clara head coach Chris Denker said. "I really felt at halftime we could have been up 16 or 18 points had we just done those things. That's what we talked about doing in the second half and the girls responded."
Annas led three others in double-digit scoring, as junior forwards Julie Butler and Kendra Rhea added 14 and 13, respectively, while senior guard Caroline Gruening added 11. Butler led the team defensively, posting seven rebounds. Additionally, Rhea went a perfect 6-6 from the field.
It took both teams a combined 11 trips down the court before a field goal was registered, a layup coming from Annas, the first of 10 points she recorded in the contest's first seven minutes. Fresno State eventually carried a 10-7 lead early, before the Broncos scored 10 straight. A three-pointer by Bulldog Veronica Mack ended the drought for the home team. Santa Clara took an eight-point lead into intermission when a drive by senior guard Becki Ashbaugh just beat the buzzer.
Santa Clara returned after halftime on fire from outside, with Ashbaugh and Gruening recording treys. Fresno State responded with its own rallied and pulled to within three at 24-37 and again 40-39. Gruening nailed two more threes from the baseline and the Broncos quickly opened a 10-point lead. SCU led by as many as 14 before settling for the final score.
Santa Clara did not miss a free throw in the second half, making 11 in the period and 16 of 19 overall for a season high 84 percent. Additionally, the Broncos went 14-23 (61 percent) from the field in the second half and 5-6 from three-point land (83 percent).
The Broncos return to the court on Wednesday and will host Temple at 7 p.m. at the Leavey Center.