UC Riverside
Santa Clara
Highlanders Miss Chance at the Buzzer in Loss to Santa Clara
12/28/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The UC Riverside Highlanders lost a heartbreaker to host Santa Clara, 63-61 in the first game of the Cable Car Classic Tournament at the Leavey Center in Santa Clara Wednesday. UCR fell to 0-9 while Santa Clara improved to 6-5.
Senior guard Rickey Porter led the Highlanders with 22 points and was the only scorer in double-digits. Freshman forward Benoit Bekono, senior forward Klaus Schille and junior guard Dedrick Bates each had eight points. The Highlanders shot 29.7% (22-of-74) from the field and were 8-of-23 from the three point line, 3-of-13 in the second half.
The Broncos were led by senior forward Travis Niesen, who had 23 points and 14 rebounds. Freshman center John Bryant had 16 points and 17 boards, but only two points and three boards in the second half. They shot 37.3% (22-of-59) from the field and 18.2% (2-of-11) from the three point line.
UCR outrebounded Santa Clara, 49-46, but were on the downside in fouls, being whistled 21 times to the Broncos' 11.
The game came down to the final possession, as the Highlanders rallied back from a 12-point deficit with 6:04 remaining. Porter got a rebound of a Niesen miss after a strong defensive possession in the final 15 seconds and UCR called time out with 2.4 seconds left. But Porter's running trey at the buzzer from the right top of the key was long.
The game looked in hand for the Broncos late in the second half as Santa Clara's Calvin Johnson scored eight points in a 10-2 Santa Clara run that gave the Broncos a 57-45 lead with 6:04 remaining. But UCR's defense held the Broncos to just one field goal and one free throw in the final 5:32 and UCR shaved the margin to two with 35 seconds left on a fast break bucket by Porter off of a steal and pass by Bates.
The Highlanders held a 31-30 lead at halftime, getting balanced scoring with Porter scoring eight and Bekono, Bates and Power each having six. UCR was 13-of-40 (32.5%) from the field and 5-of-10 (50.0%) from the three point line The Broncos were led by Bryant, who had a double-double with 14 points and 14 boards. The Broncos were 12-of-30 (40.0%) from the field but 0-of-7 from the three-point line.
