Hot Hollyfield Sparks Titans

Autumn Hollyfield shot the lights out . . . literally.

After making two three-pointers in a 40-second span early in the second half to give Cal State Fullerton a 12-point lead over second-seeded UC Santa Barbara, the lights went out in the Thomas & Mack Center.

When they came back on a few minutes later, Hollyfield was still lighting it up. She finished with eight three-pointers, breaking her day-old Big West tournament record as the Titans held off a late Gaucho charge en route to a 97-86 quarterfinal victory.

The seventh-seeded Titans (14-14) play third-seeded UC Irvine at 6 tonight in the semifinals.

“She was hitting those from way, way out there too,” Santa Barbara Coach Mark French said. “Some of those should have been fours and fives.”

Hollyfield led the nation in three-point shooting last season, but the senior forward suffered a knee injury in the second game of the season, underwent arthroscopic surgery and missed 16 games. The day Hollyfield was hurt is the day Koko Lahanas came off the bench to score 32 points and become the focus of the Titan offense.

Lahanas, now the No. 1 scorer in the nation and a first-team All-Big West selection, matched Hollyfield’s point total of 29 Wednesday, but Hollyfield, who made six threes during Tuesday’s victory over San Jose State, did the damage outside and opened up things inside.

Hollyfield, who returned to the Titan lineup Feb. 28, made eight of 13 three-point shots, five of them in the second half as the Gauchos (17-9) attempted to rally from a 53-42 halftime deficit.

“I guess I was just in a zone,” Hollyfield said. “It didn’t matter where I shot from today. It’s a great feeling. I haven’t felt like this since last year. It was outrageous.”

How powerful was the Titans’ inside-outside offensive barrage that included a 25-point, 10-assist contribution from guard Shayla Bradshaw? Santa Barbara shot 51% from the floor, outrebounded Fullerton, 44-35, had five players in double figures and still lost by 11.

“It is exciting,” Titan Coach Deborah Ayres said. “We completely changed our style of play when we lost Autumn, pressing, running the fast break and trying to get the ball into Koko.

“I guess we weren’t quite used to playing with Autumn when she first came back, but now teams have to go out and guard her and they can’t double- and triple-team Koko. So I hope we’re peaking right now.”

How far can the Titans go?

“I wouldn’t want to play them right now,” French said. “They have a very simple offense, and I say that with admiration. They run it against man-to-man or zone defenses and they’re reading things very well right now.”