Saturday, January 11
Riverside, CA
7:00 PM
University of California, Riverside
52
vs
72
UC Irvine
Photo by: Carlos Puma
UC Irvine's Defense Too Much As Men's Basketball Falls 72-52
1/11/2014 10:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Riverside—The UC Riverside Men's Basketball Team welcomed UC Irvine to the SRC Arena Saturday evening for the Highlanders first home conference game of the season, but the Anteaters' defense proved to be too much as UCR connected on just 29.6 percent of its shots on the night including one of 12 from three-point range in a 72-52 defeat (Box Score).
It was a low-scoring affair in the early going as the Highlanders led 9-8 with 11:32 to go in the first half. Irvine was without leading scorer Will Davis II and 7-6 shot-blocking sensation Mamadou Ndiaye, which contributed to the 'Eaters early struggles, but they began to find their collective rhythm with under five minutes remaining before the half.
UC Irvine led 20-17 at that juncture, following a pair of Taylor Johns free throws, but the Anteaters scored the next 13 points over the a span of three minutes and 41 seconds to go up 16 with 1:06 on the clock. The Highlanders scored the final four points before the break to cut the Irvine lead to 12.
The Anteaters' defense dominated in the period holding the Highlanders to eight of 27 shooting from the field (29.6%) including oh for five from three-point range. Meanwhile, UC Irvine connected on 44.8 percent of its shots including six of 13 from beyond the arc. The Anteaters also went the entire period without a turnover.
Eight different Irvine players dented the scoring column in the period led by Chris McNealy's seven. Seven members of the Highlanders did likewise paced by Sam Finley's six.
UC Riverside scored the first two points coming out of the locker room on a pair of Steven Thornton free throws, but Irvine countered by running off eight straight to give the Anteaters their largest lead of the game at 18, 43-25.
Two possessions later, the Highlanders began to close the gap. Finley made two free throws, and after a McNealy miss, Johns converted on a lay up to make it a 14-point game. The Highlanders followed another Irvine miss with a Chris Patton Lay up, and the 6-10 center hit a jumper in the paint on UC Riverside's next trip down the floor to reduce the Anteaters' advantage to 10, 45-35, with 14:52 to go.
That was as close as the Highlanders would get, however, as UC Irvine held UCR to another 29.6 percent shooting effort in the second half. Patton scored 10 points after the break to give him a game-high tying 14 on the night. Luke Nelson scored 14 for Irvine, and McNealy joined him in double figures with 13. Finley scored 13 for UC Riverside, and Johns recorded his fifth double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The Highlanders are on the road next week as they travel to UC Davis on Thursday, December 16, and Hawai'i on Saturday, December 18.
It was a low-scoring affair in the early going as the Highlanders led 9-8 with 11:32 to go in the first half. Irvine was without leading scorer Will Davis II and 7-6 shot-blocking sensation Mamadou Ndiaye, which contributed to the 'Eaters early struggles, but they began to find their collective rhythm with under five minutes remaining before the half.
UC Irvine led 20-17 at that juncture, following a pair of Taylor Johns free throws, but the Anteaters scored the next 13 points over the a span of three minutes and 41 seconds to go up 16 with 1:06 on the clock. The Highlanders scored the final four points before the break to cut the Irvine lead to 12.
The Anteaters' defense dominated in the period holding the Highlanders to eight of 27 shooting from the field (29.6%) including oh for five from three-point range. Meanwhile, UC Irvine connected on 44.8 percent of its shots including six of 13 from beyond the arc. The Anteaters also went the entire period without a turnover.
Eight different Irvine players dented the scoring column in the period led by Chris McNealy's seven. Seven members of the Highlanders did likewise paced by Sam Finley's six.
UC Riverside scored the first two points coming out of the locker room on a pair of Steven Thornton free throws, but Irvine countered by running off eight straight to give the Anteaters their largest lead of the game at 18, 43-25.
Two possessions later, the Highlanders began to close the gap. Finley made two free throws, and after a McNealy miss, Johns converted on a lay up to make it a 14-point game. The Highlanders followed another Irvine miss with a Chris Patton Lay up, and the 6-10 center hit a jumper in the paint on UC Riverside's next trip down the floor to reduce the Anteaters' advantage to 10, 45-35, with 14:52 to go.
That was as close as the Highlanders would get, however, as UC Irvine held UCR to another 29.6 percent shooting effort in the second half. Patton scored 10 points after the break to give him a game-high tying 14 on the night. Luke Nelson scored 14 for Irvine, and McNealy joined him in double figures with 13. Finley scored 13 for UC Riverside, and Johns recorded his fifth double-double of the season with 10 points and 11 rebounds.
The Highlanders are on the road next week as they travel to UC Davis on Thursday, December 16, and Hawai'i on Saturday, December 18.
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