‘Eaters bring a 3-game streak to Vandals’ lair

Steve Virgen

This was supposed to be the season Adam Parada broke out and become a

candidate for Big West Conference Player of the Year honors.

Instead it’s been a season of inconsistency for Parada, who has

had to overcome double-team defense and his own foul trouble.

Parada, as did the UC Irvine men’s basketball team, made huge

strides toward breaking out Thursday and the result was a 59-58

victory at Utah State and a place among the elite.

Parada, who scored a team-high 15 points Thursday, will again be

the focus when UCI, which is on a three-game winning streak, faces

Idaho at the Cowan Spectrum tonight at 7:05.

The Anteaters (14-7, 8-4 in the Big West) are tied in second place

with Utah State, one game behind UC Santa Barbara, while Idaho

(10-11, 6-6) is in a tie for fifth place with Cal Poly San Luis

Obispo.

Parada scored just two points and grabbed three rebounds when UCI

defeated Idaho at the Bren Events Center, 58-45, Jan. 18. There

appeared to be no one who could match up well with Parada, but he got

into foul trouble and never found his rhythm.

Against Utah State Thursday, UCI Coach Pat Douglass said Parada

displayed what “people have been anticipating,” in the first half.

Parada scored 12 of his 15 points in the first half, using a variety

of post moves, mainly 8-10-foot fadeaway shots. He leads the Big West

in field-goal percentage.

The Aggies didn’t immediately double team Parada. They waited

until he caught the ball in the post and an extra defender would come

down and guard him, as well.

The Vandals will most likely immediately double-team the UCI

7-foot junior center.

“I thought (the Aggies) were going to double me hard, just like

the other teams have been doing,” Parada said after Thursday’s game.

“But they didn’t.

Every time I took the dribble they would come down, so I would

turn to my left shoulder. I don’t think they were expecting that.”

Douglass said Parada played with confidence and carried the

Anteaters through the first half. It was obvious Parada was a key to

the win, yet Parada knows that was just one game.

“We’ve lost to Fullerton and Northridge, and those teams that are

near the bottom of the league,” Parada said. “We can’t be like that.

This is the team we are (after a three-game winning streak). We

showed how we can play. We went through a lull. We went through that

three-game losing streak, and now we’re back in the race. We don’t

give up. Now we have to go to Idaho.”

The Anteaters are 6-4 on the road this year, and 4-2 in league

play in games away from the Bren Center. Yet, perhaps most

importantly, they are playing their best basketball. They followed up

their dominating 72-52 win over Cal State Fullerton, with an

emotional victory in Logan, Utah against the Aggies.

While Parada produced for UCI in the first half, senior forward

Jordan Harris helped lead the ‘Eaters to victory in the second half.

He scored nine of his 13 points in the second half and also provided

two key stops while guarding Utah State senior Desmond Penigar, late

in the game.

Harris scored 19 points and grabbed six rebounds against the

Vandals earlier in the season.

The Anteaters also feature senior guard Mike Hood, the most recent

Big West Player of the Week honoree who scored eight points,

including two game-winning free throws with 1.3 seconds left Thursday. Hood has hit 20 of 26 three-pointers in the past seven

games.

UCI freshman point guard Jeff Gloger continues to provide energy

for the Anteaters, as he guides the offense. Gloger grabbed five

rebounds (two offensive) Thursday.

Douglass was impressed with guard Mike Efevberha, the Anteaters’

lone true freshman who scored seven points off the bench Thursday. He

played nine minutes after a season-low two minutes of action against

Fullerton last week.

Idaho is coming off a 75-67 victory over Long Beach State. Dwayne

Williams, the Vandals 6-1 junior guard, led Idaho with 30 points.

Junior Tyrone Hayes leads the Vandals with a 13.9 points per game

average.