Colleges: Coming down to the wire

Amara Aguilar

Stressing out isn’t exactly one of UC Irvine men’s basketball Coach

Pat Douglass’ personality traits.

It’s a good thing, too, especially after the Anteaters’ 73-72 overtime

loss to visiting Cal State Northridge Saturday.

The Matadors snapped UCI’s 19-game win streak at home, sixth-best in

the nation, and handed the Anteaters their first loss in the Big West

Conference.

For the most part this season, the Anteaters (13-5, 6-1 in the Big

West) have not earned home wins the easy way.

They fell behind by 15 points in the second half against visiting

University of the Pacific, but rallied to win, 62-58, Thursday.

UCI overcame seven-point deficits in the second half against visiting

Long Beach State on Dec. 22 to win, 75-69, and Cal State Fullerton to

pull out a 68-58 victory Jan. 3. The Anteaters also rallied from an

18-point deficit with less than 10 minutes left to come away with a

74-69 win over visiting UC Davis on Dec. 1.

“After a while, it’s not by accident that when we are down, we come

back,” Douglass said. “I would rather not have them all be close.”

So, how do games coming down to the wire affect Douglass? During the

games, he said he keeps his cool.

“I’m pretty calm inside,” he said. “I was a guard in college and I

know what you are supposed to do in those situations. As a leader, you

have to be calm and give guidance and direction and push them to go to

greater heights. I’m pretty focused on what has to be done.”

What about after a tight game? Does he take his work home with him?

“It doesn’t bother me. I don’t go home and worry about it,” Douglass

said. “In my career, I have had a lot of close games. Fortunately, I’m

one of those personalities that doesn’t stress too much. Toward the end

of the year, you do get worn out a little bit. It catches up with you. A

lot of people worry about my health, but it’s part of the game.”

In Saturday’s game against Northridge, UCI was the team that lost a

big lead for a change. The Anteaters were ahead by as many as 20 points

in the first half.

The Anteaters, who sit at the top of the Big West standings, will look

to rebound as they embark on a four-game road trip beginning with a

conference contest against UC Santa Barbara Thursday at 7:05 p.m.

Vanguard women’s basketball player Erin Edmiston was recently named

Lion of the Week. Against Point Loma Nazarene, she scored a Vanguard

career-high 20 points and grabbed six rebounds to help the Lions win,

68-59.

In Vanguard basketball action this week, the men’s squad hosts

California Baptist Tuesday and Biola University Saturday, both at 7:30

p.m.

The women’s team will play the same schools on both days before the

men at 5:30 p.m.

The UCI women’s basketball team will take on UC Santa Barbara at the

Bren Events Center Thursday at 7 p.m.