Anteaters Can’t Get Past--or Over--Pacific

STOCKTON —  By the time Pacific’s Michael Olowokandi blocked his final shot Thursday, UC Irvine found just how far perseverance would take them.

With the 7-foot Olowokandi dominating the defensive end, and delivering his standard offensive performance, the Tigers finally shook off the pesky Anteaters, 72-63, for their 25th consecutive home-court victory in front of 4,576 in the Spanos Center. It dropped the Anteaters into a tie with Pacific for first place in the Big West Conference’s Western Division.

Irvine (6-9, 3-2 in conference play), which had won three consecutive games, was poised for another shocker, even bigger than its victory over New Mexico State two weeks ago. When Lamarr Parker, who scored 22 points, hit a layup over Olowokandi’s outstretched hand, Irvine was within two, at 60-58, with 2 minutes 16 seconds left.

Olowokandi answered with a base-line jumper, then intimidated Irvine’s Matt Willard into a wild shot off the backboard. Pacific then made eight of 10 free throws, four by Corey Anders, in the final minute to pull away.

“The big man altered the game,” Irvine Coach Pat Douglass said. “Actually, he altered shots.”

Said Olowokandi: “I was just doing my job. It’s all in a day’s work.”

Irvine was routed, 96-46, in Stockton last season, a game that Olowokandi missed because of an injury. How bad would that game have been if he had played?

Olowokandi had more or less an average night offensively, making nine of 18 field goals and missing five of eight free throws. His 21 points and 11 rebounds equaled his season averages.

It was on defense that he dominated, finishing with a career-high seven blocks. Not everyone was overly impressed, however.

“He puts his shoes on the same as I do,” Parker said.

Sure, though Olowokandi tends to get a little higher off the ground in them. He blocked five shots in the second half, the biggest being one by Parker.

Parker’s two free throws gave Irvine a 48-46 lead with 8:58 left. The Tigers turned over the ball and Parker found himself alone behind the three-point line. His shot barely got out of his hand when Olowokandi came from the key to make the block.

“Coach told me to dominate the red zone,” Olowokandi said.

The Tigers needed big plays from Olowokandi. They needed the 25 points from Anders, who was also a nuisance on defense with two steals and two blocks, as well as being called for goaltending twice. The Anteaters were not going to roll over like a year ago.

The game was rough from the start and got rougher. Irvine forward Adam Stetson missed three minutes in the second half after being elbowed in the jaw.

Irvine, though, gave as good as it received.

“I couldn’t tell if my shorts didn’t fit or they were falling off from all the grabbing,” said Anders, who made seven of eight shots.

Still, the Tigers nearly took command several times. They scored nine consecutive points to take a 14-6 lead six minutes into the game. But Irvine pulled to within 32-29 by halftime.

Pacific asserted itself to start the second half, but Parker scored the Anteaters’ first nine points to keep them close.

When Parker cooled, Stetson got hot. He scored 21 points and had 14 of Irvine’s 18 points during an eight-minute stretch in the second half. Not even being flattened stopped him. Stetson sank a three-pointer moments after returning.

“Our kids responded to the challenge,” Douglass said. “We were within two with two minutes left. I think you can say they saw a ballgame.”