Men’s college basketball: ‘Eaters rally past UCSB

GOLETA - After watching a 19-game home winning streak go down the

drain, UC Irvine returned to championship form Thursday night and won

another Big West Conference men’s basketball game on the road.

Jerry Green, UCI’s 6-foot-3 senior guard and All-American candidate

who averages 21.5 points per game, scored 20 of his team-high 22 points

in the second half as the Anteaters rallied to defeat UC Santa Barbara,

81-70, in a first-place showdown before a near-capacity crowd of 4,682 at

the Thunderdome.

The Gauchos (11-6, 5-3 in the Big West) enjoyed a 30-29 halftime lead,

but UCI (14-5, 7-1), which lost to Cal State Northridge in overtime

Saturday to also end an eight-game winning streak, came out hot in the

second half.

The ‘Eaters hit 7 of 8 three-point attempts in the opening 7:45 to

build a 56-41 advantage and the hosts never got closer than eight points

the rest of the way.

“Obviously it’s a big game for us to win on the road, and it was

definitely one of our better games of the season,” said UCI Coach Pat

Douglass, whose defending conference champions have a one-game lead over

Northridge and two-game edge over Santa Barbara.

Green, who also had 11 assists, was quiet in the first half, but

exploded with eight straight points to start the second half, in which

UCI outscored the Gauchos, 52-40.

“We let them score 52 points and take over the game,” UCSB Coach Bob

Williams said. “It was an impressive performance, but we didn’t toughen

up when we needed to, and to be a championship team, we need to learn how

to respond.”

Green, whose three-point attempt at the buzzer to end the first half

went in and out, sparked UCI’s blitz with a steal and layup 75 seconds

into the second half. He hit a three-pointer to give UCI a 34-32 lead,

then canned another with about 17:00 left for a 37-34 advantage.

Green finished his eight-point run with a short jumper from the

baseline, then after UCSB’s Bryan Whitehead missed two free throws with

16:06 on the clock, UCI’s Mike Hood nailed his third three-pointer with

15:38 to play on an assist by Green and Green scored again on another

short jumper for a 44-34 lead.

UCI hit its next four three-point attempts, two by Stanislav Zuzak and

one each by Jordan Harris and Aras Baskaukas, as the ‘Eaters amassed a

15-point lead to quiet the home crowd.

“Jerry Green took his shots and the rest of the team got hot,”

Douglass said. “We hit a number of threes in a row and that was the key

to the win.”

UCI finished 11 of 19 from three-point territory, 7 of 10 in the

second half.

UCSB, which led by as many as seven points in the first half (22-15),

received a game-high 23 points from guard Nick Jones.

BIG WEST CONFERENCE

UC Irvine 81, UC Santa Barbara 70

UCI - Green 22, Hood 10, Parada 6, Harris 13, Zuzak 14, Christ 9,

Baskaukas 3, Okoro 2, Korfman 2.

3-pt. goals - Zuzak 3, Hood 3, Harris 2, Green 2, Baskaukas 1.

Fouled out - none.

Technicals - Coach Pat Douglass.

UCSB - Hull 10, Ndiaye 14, Whitehead 4, Jones 23, Atako 8, Skultety 3,

Fullove 8.

3-pt. goals - Jones 4, Fullove 2, Hull 2, Atako 1.

Fouled out - none.

Technicals - none.

Halftime: UCSB, 30-29.