Men’s college basketball: UCI comes up short at Cal Poly

SAN LUIS OBISPO - Even though it has proven this season to be

road-tested tough, the UC Irvine men’s basketball team could not overcome

the visiting obstacles Saturday night in a Big West Conference upset

victory by Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s Mustangs, 50-47.

UCI, entering the game undefeated on the road in conference play, was

outscored by Cal Poly in the second half, 29-20, before a sellout crowd

of 3,032 at Mott Gym.

Irvine, the defending conference champion, had three baskets nullified

early in the second half by a referee, including two by Matt Okoro on

slam-dunk putbacks, in which the 6-foot-7 sophomore forward was whistled

for being over the rim.

Both of Okoro’s dunks were taken away during a 15-2 scoring run for

the Mustangs (11-6, 5-4 in the Big West), who turned a 33-26 deficit into

a six-point lead with 11 minutes left.

The Anteaters (14-6, 7-2), who regained the lead, 44-43, with 5:01

remaining on a floating jumper by senior guard Jerry Green, were

outscored down the stretch, 7-3, and missed four three-point attempts in

the closing minute as the Mustangs held on for an upset win. Their fans

stormed the court afterward.

“Initially, I didn’t think we needed to shoot the three, but our

players seemed to get caught up in the excitement at the end,” UCI Coach

Pat Douglass said.

In a defensive-oriented game, the Mustangs shot only 9 of 36 from the

field in the first half (25%), but trailed only 27-21 at halftime. Their

man defense made it tough for UCI to pass on the perimeter and they

double-teamed Green throughout.

“I thought in the first half we played good defense, but couldn’t take

advantage offensively with Cal Poly shooting only 25%,” Douglass said.

Green, who entered the game 27 points shy of tying Tod Murphy as the

school’s all-time leading scorer at 1,778, was held to a season-low seven

points, including a woeful effort at the foul line (1 of 6). Green

started the game as an 81% free-throw shooter.

After Green’s only second-half field goal gave UCI a 44-43 edge, Cal

Poly guard Steve Geary, who sparked the Mustangs with a game-high 15

points off the bench, scored on a shot off the glass to put the hosts

back in front, 45-44, with 4:27 left. The Mustangs, 7-1 at home this

season, never trailed again.

On San Luis Obispo’s next trip down, Geary drained a three-pointer

with 3:22 on the clock for a 48-44 lead.

Green, who led UCI with 10 rebounds, missed the front end of a

one-and-one with 3:08 to play, then missed again on the first shot of a

one-and-one with 2:55 left.

Brandon Beeson sank two free throws with 1:38 left to give Cal Poly a

50-44 lead, then UCI’s Mike Hood netted his team’s only second-half

three-pointer with 1:23 on the clock, before Cal Poly dodged more bullets

in the waning seconds and won by three.

UCI, only 5 of 16 from the foul line (1 of 6 in the second half),

pulled away in the first half after the game was tied, 9-9. The ‘Eaters

built their biggest lead, 29-21, when Jordan Harris scored on a putback

to open the second half.

“You have to give Cal Poly’s defense some credit,” Douglass said. “We

had our chances, but we turned the ball over too much (19 turnovers, 11 in the second half) and missed our free throws.”

The Anteaters, who average 72 points per game, were led by Hood and

7-foot center Adam Parada, each with 11 points.

UCI, at the midway point in the Big West campaign, is in the midst of

four straight road games. The ‘Eaters will travel Thursday to UC

Riverside.