Titan Women Off to a Flying Start : Big West: Cal State Fullerton scores first 14 points, roars past Fresno State, 79-41, in tournament opener.

Fresno State controlled the tip-- that was something. But after that, Cal State Fullerton and Genia Miller were off on a romp, beginning their postseason with a 79-41 victory over the Bulldogs in the first round of the Big West Conference women’s basketball tournament Wednesday at Long Beach Arena.

Miller and Fresno’s Stacey Cornaggia jumped at center court to start the game. The Bulldogs got the ball and immediately turned it over on a backcourt violation.

The momentum, it turned out, had swung for good.

Fullerton bolted to a 14-0 lead, scoring on its first five possessions.

Fresno went without a basket for 5 minutes 32 seconds.

The first shot Fresno tried was blocked by Miller, the Titans’ 6-foot-3 senior. It was one of a school-record 11 shots she would block in the game on the way to her first triple-double: 29 points, 13 rebounds, 11 blocks.

Before Fresno scored a second basket, Fullerton led, 19-2.

At halftime, Fullerton led by 26 points, 47-21, and had missed only eight shots, shooting 68%.

Joey Ray, the guard who has set Fullerton records for three-pointers attempted and made in a season, had tried seven shots in the first half and made six of them, including one three-pointer. She finished with 22 points, making eight of 13 shots, including two three-pointers, and added six assists. Claudette Jackson added 16 points.

“Just a tremendous effort on the part of all our players,” Fullerton Coach Maryalyce Jeremiah said.

Fullerton shot 53% for the game, not enough to match its season-high of 56% against UC Irvine.

Fresno shot 28%--keep Miller’s blocks in mind--and tied a tournament record for fewest points in a game.

Fullerton had beaten Fresno twice this season, by 24 and 27 points. But Jeremiah cautioned her team to remember last season, when they also played the Bulldogs in the first round of the Big West tournament.

“Last year at this time we were sitting here having lost the first game to Fresno,” Jeremiah said. “We remembered they were the ones who put us out of the tournament.”

This time, they will be facing New Mexico State, which stunned 15th-ranked Nevada Las Vegas, 90-89, Wednesday night. Fullerton plays New Mexico State in a semifinal game at 7 tonight in the Long Beach Arena.

Fresno’s leading scorer, Sheri Brown, fouled out less than five minutes into the second half.

Fresno Coach Bob Spencer took stock of the situation at halftime and looked toward the future, holding his seniors out for the final 20 minutes to look at his returning players.

Senior Geri Gainey, from Mater Dei High School, who averages 14 points, played only eight minutes and did not score in her final game for Fresno, which finished 16-13.

Fullerton isn’t finished, and with a 23-6 record, Jeremiah doesn’t believe her team has to win the conference tournament in order to receive an NCAA bid.

“Let me put it this way, I’m very optimistic we’ll get into the NCAAs, with the teams we’ve beaten in conference and preconference,” she said. “I’d be very surprised if these players don’t get the chance (to play in the NCAAs). Now we want to be in the tournament and play at home. You get greedy. We want to win this tournament. We’ve got the best chance we’ve had in a while.”

Big West Women’s notes

Cal State Fullerton’s Genia Miller was named the Big West Conference player of the year Wednesday, becoming the first unanimous choice in the history of the award. Fullerton Coach Maryalyce Jeremiah, who has guided the team to a school-record 23 victories, was named the coach of the year, and junior forward Claudette Jackson joined Miller on the first team. The other members of the first team were Dana Wilkerson and Penny Moore of Cal State Long Beach, Vicki Lander of Nevada Las Vegas and Tine Freil of Pacific. . . . UC Irvine point guard Chrissy Chang made the all-freshman team, and Fresno State senior Geri Gainey, from Mater Dei High School, was honorable mention all-conference.