After falling behind early in their previous two road games, UCSB came out battling to keep up with the University of San Diego Toreros.

However, with Gaucho starters plagued by foul trouble and faced with a career-high 30 point performance from forward Maya Hood, San Diego was able to pull away for a 77-63 win Friday night at the Jenny Craig Pavillion.

Drea Toler lead all UCSB (2-3) scorers off the bench with 14 points, her highest output in blue and gold, while the three point shooting heated up for the first time in two games. Sarah Porter knocked down three of five from beyond the arc, finishing with 11 points on the night, as the Gauchos connected on 41.2% of their shots from downtown.

"We were in rhythm, and our footwork was better," said head coach Bonnie Henrickson, "I thought (being) more disciplined how we caught in and got into a shot was important for us."

The Gauchos battled back from a six point deficit after the first quarter to send the teams to halftime tied 32-32, outscoring San Diego 22-16 in the second. However, in the second half early foul trouble to Drew Edelman and Coco Miller kept two of the top producing scorers for the team on the bench for long stretches.

"We didn't let it get away from us, we buckled down defensively and in there we missed some shots at the rim, and then the foul trouble," Henrickson said, "Those are opportunities for us to learn and grow, and that will be important for us."

A 33-24 rebounding edge for the hosts also made things difficult for UCSB, as San Diego dominated in second chance points with a 14-1 edge.

Chaya Durr and Miller also added 10 points, with each grabbing a team-high four rebounds. Onome Jemerigbe dealt a squad-best five assists, while also scoring six and corraling three rebounds. Taylor Farris added to a 23-21 UCSB bench scoring edge with six points, while also swatting a pair of San Diego shots.

After spending the first 15:41 of the game trailing, the Gauchos outscored the Toreros by a 12-6 margin over 2:37 in the second stanza to knot the score at 28-28. A three by Porter, a pair of buckets by Farris, then a sinewy layup and triple from Toler brought the teams level. A duo of free throws from Miller gave UCSB their first lead with 2:48 before half, but a three and a free throw forced Toler to sprint the length of the court in the final six seconds for a tying layup to level the score at halftime.

"I thought she made good decisions to drive and let got of some things, kicked some uncontested threes for her buddies so it was a good night for her, progress," said Henrickson.

After San Diego scored the first six points of the second half, UCSB reeled it back in with a Porter three ball and a slashing Durr layup. Another Durr drive and-one tied it at 42-42 at the 3:29 mark of the third, but it would be the final time the Gauchos drew level. San Diego out-scored UCSB eight to three from that point on to lead 50-45 after three.

UCSB again pulled within a single possession with 1:23 played in the fourth on another Durr and-one, but the 54-51 deficit would be the closest they'd come for the remainder of the game. San Diego made eight of 12 in the final quarter, with Hood scoring 10 of her 30 in crunch time to close it out. The Toreros made 24 of 30 free throw attempts for the game, with 20 coming in the second half and converting 11 of 15 in the fourth to pull away. 

"If you're opponent shoots 30 free throws I don't care where you are, home or away, that's defensively undisciplined," said Henrickson.

The Gauchos return home to the Thunderdome to face another West Coast Conference foe in Santa Clara University on Wednesday, November 30th for a 7PM tip off.

"Defensively our positioning has to be better, our discipline has to be better," said Henrickson.