Amber Melgoza holds the game ball she used to become Santa Barbara High’s all-time leading scorer in girls basketball.
It was an aggressive play that enabled Amber Melgoza to become the all-time scoring leader in Santa Barbara High girls basketball history on Wednesday night.
In a battle for a loose ball late in the first quarter of the Channel League and regular-season finale against Buena, Melgoza ripped it out of the hands of a Bulldog player and scored a layup. The basket put her ahead of Lisa Willett’s 1,804 points.
Melgoza finished the game with 39 points, giving her 1,836 in her career, and the Dons held off Buena for a tough 68-62 victory at J.R. Richard Gym. The win gave them sole possession of second place in the Channel League behind Ventura, which should help their seeding for the CIF-SS Division 2AA playoffs. The pairings will be announced on Sunday.
Santa Barbara (20-5, 6-2) is ranked fourth in the latest poll.
Becoming the all-time scoring leader at Santa Barbara High is quite an accomplishment.This is a program that has produced standout players like Willett (class of 2000), who played on strong teams at UCSB, and prep All-Americans Holly Ford (USC) and Kristin Knapp (Notre Dame).
And, Melgoza did it as a junior.
Santa Barbara coach Andrew Butcher was amazed Melgoza rose into the No. 1 spot so quickly.
“To be honest, she didn’t play the first 14 games of her freshman year; she was last on the bench,”he said.”So it’s just amazing. She’s a kid who shoots at 6 in the morning almost everyday; she stays after and works on her game. Some kids do that, but with her talent and mental toughness, it’s just a really good recipe.”
Butcher noted that Willett averaged 16.9 points per game every game for four years. “That’s crazy,” he said. “Now, we have had more games since we went far last year in state but still. When she’s done it will be interesting to see her scoring average.”
Melgoza is averaging 35 points per game this year. She finished one point from her achieving her seventh 40-point game of the season. She holds the school’s single-game scoring record with 48 points.
“I was taking better shots and had a better shot selection,” she said.
Asked if she knew she was closing in on the record, Melgoza said she didn’t know. “I had no clue I was even close to this. The whole team knew, my family knew but no one told me at all. After the game I was shocked.”
The record was announced over the public address system at the conclusion of the game.
Melgoza gave credit to her teammates for helping her set the record.
“For me getting this record, it’s not myself scoring, it’s me as part of this team scoring.”
Jada Howard provided the Dons with additional scoring in Wednesday’s game, tossing in 19 points. She also had six steals.
“Jada, I thought, had a really solid game today,” Butcher said. “She didn’t lose her composure like some of us did, including the coaches.”
Kimberly Gebhardt grabbed a team-high nine rebounds and Melgoza had eight.
The Dons had their hands full with Buena, which was coming off a shocking 66-9 loss against Ventura
“They came out like Bulldogs,” said Melgoza. “I knew they were going to come out strong.”
Leah Kopp scored 19 points and Aaliyah Staples-West had 16, including three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, for the Bulldogs (18-8, 4-4).
“They had that horrendous game against Ventura, and you do not want to play that team the day after that,” Butcher said. “They’re a good team, they’re No. 2 in their division, they won 18 games. I knew they would show up and play better.”
But the Bulldogs couldn’t contain Melgoza. She finished her night driving to the hoop, getting fouled and completing a three-point play.
