SANTA CLARA, Calif. — An impressive collegiate debut and a new-look Santa Clara University women's basketball team shined the lights brighter on Monday's 2022-23 season-opening game at Leavey Center, but visiting UC Santa Barbara played spoiler by holding on for a 73-61 non-conference victory.
Freshman guard Tess Heal – playing in her first official collegiate basketball game – splashed onto the scene with 28 points on just 14 field goal attempts. Heal was the highest scorer in the West Coast Conference Monday and tied for 11th in the nation on the season's opening day. She added six rebounds, two assists and a steal to her dazzling debut effort.
Q4, 4:51 | @UCSB_WBB 65, #Broncos 52
— Santa Clara Women's Basketball (@Santaclarawbb) November 8, 2022
Tess Heal goes Coast-To-Coast for her 22nd & 23rd points of the game, forcing a timeout!
Santa Clara has held the Gauchos scoreless for the last 2:15#StampedeTogether | #SCUBroncos pic.twitter.com/UGBmQcxYNB
Sophomore transfer forward Olivia Pollerd was also strong in her Santa Clara debut, scoring 10 points on 50% shooting from both the floor (4 for 8) and from 3-point range (2 for 4). She threw in five rebounds, two blocks, two steals and an assist. Lara Edmanson was the Broncos' top rebounder with seven (four offensive boards).
Heal was especially hot in the second half – scoring 21 of her 28 there on 7 for 10 shooting – and even moreso in the fourth quarter, where she scored 14 points while only missing one shot from the floor. Heal's late surge coinsided with the Broncos' last-quarter push.
Santa Clara (0-1) started wearing down UC Santa Barbara (1-0) in the fourth quarter after the Gauchos had had their way for most of the first three periods. The SCU defense started shutting down the Gauchos and drawing fouls, while an 11-4 Broncos push cut the lead to 11. Santa Clara held UCSB scoreless for nearly five minutes while nearly cutting the deficit to single digits. But Santa Clara missed both its shots to do so, and that's when UC Santa Barbara finally found the net again. Kennedy Johnson put in two of her eight bench points on a pullup jumper to slow the Broncos' comeback.
Check out @coachbillcarr's postgame comments following the Broncos' 73-61 season-opening setback vs. UC Santa Barbara at home ��#StampedeTogether | #SCUBroncos pic.twitter.com/hEaE1iqMOO
— Santa Clara Women's Basketball (@Santaclarawbb) November 8, 2022
For everything Santa Clara threw at UC Santa Barbara earlier in the game, the Gauchos seemed to have an answer.
The teams traded leads five times in the first quarter alone, and after the Broncos took back a one-point, 14-13 advantage, the Gauchos closed the quarter with five unanswered points to lead 18-14 after one.
Pollerd hit second third 3-pointer in the second quarter to pull Santa Clara within one at 20-19, but then UCSB answered with a 14-1 run that put them up 34-20. And as soon as Pollerd made the first basket of the third quarter, the Gauchos answered with another 14-4 run that gave them their largest lead of the game (21 points) at 55-34.
UC Santa Barbara was led by a double-double from East Bay native Ila Lane, who scored 17 points and grabbed 11 rebounds. Four Gauchos in all reached double-digit points. Anya Choice scored 13, Alexis Tucker poured in 12 and Taylor Mole chipped in 10.
Santa Clara continues its four-game season-opening home stand at 6 p.m. Friday when it hosts another Big West Conference team in Cal State Fullerton. Fans can purchase tickets and find all live coverage links on SantaClaraBroncos.com.
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