‘Eaters’ streak halted

Barry Faulkner

The combined weight of a seven-game losing streak finally gave way

under the collective shove of 10 shoulders Wednesday night.

All five UC Irvine starters scored in double figures to lead an

80-71 home triumph over Long Beach State that halted the longest

Anteater losing skein since 1999 and may also have saved a men’s

basketball season that had, having gone more than a month without a

victory, edged dangerously close to the brink.

The win moved UCI (10-13, 5-9 in the Big West Conference) a game

ahead of Long Beach State (6-17, 4-10) into sole possession of eighth

place with four conference games remaining. The No. 8 spot is

significant, because it brings with it the final berth into the

10-team conference’s postseason tournament.

“This was a big win for us,” said UCI Coach Pat Douglass, who,

along with his players, last savored the feeling Jan. 17 against

visiting Cal State Fullerton. “You try to tell the kids to just keep

playing hard and smart, but the bottom line is, you need to win

games.”

Douglass said Saturday’s 72-54 loss at UC Riverside, the ‘Eaters’

most lopsided setback in 48 games, dating back to last season, might

have triggered a resurgence of enthusiasm among his players.

“We hadn’t been blown out in any of the other games [during the

streak], before Saturday,” Douglass said. “Maybe that made the kids

think ‘I guess we need to pick this up a little.’ ”

No Anteater took that message to heart more than 6-foot-8 junior

forward Greg Ethington. The 250-pounder brought much more than 16

points and a career-high 13 rebounds to the equation Wednesday, as he

continued the aggressive play that helped him crack the starting

lineup the last four games.

“Ethington continues to show the effort and emotion, which is good

to see,” Douglass said of his emerging leader, who has averaged a

team-high 13.2 points his last five games. “Greg is a pretty intense

player who is very emotional on the floor. I think it really does

[inspire other UCI players].”

UCI senior Adam Parada agreed.

“[Ethington is] the most aggressive guy on the court, even if he

is not scoring,” Parada said. “We definitely feed off of his energy.”

There was plenty of energy to go around, beginning with the first

possession of the game, when Ethington snatched the first of three

consecutive offensive rebounds, that finally resulted in a Parada

free throw.

That was the Anteaters’ last lead, however, until Ethington began

a 9-0 UCI spurt that included scoring contributions from four

players. The run ended on a Jeff Gloger layup, set up by one of

Ethington’s five offensive rebounds, and gave the hosts a 28-23 edge

with 5:59 left in the opening half.

UCI led, 43-35, at halftime and all but locked up the victory with

a 9-0 surge to start the second half.

“We’ve had our troubles at the start of the second half,” said

Douglass, who was pleasantly surprised to be reminded of the early

second-half dominance. “We did?” Douglass said after being asked

about the nine straight points. “That’s good to hear.”

Ethington began the second-half blitz with a layin and Parada (11

points, including 4-of-6 field-goal shooting) converted a Mike

Efevberha assist to keep it going.

Ethington then tipped in an Irvine miss, before Efevberha set up a

Ross Schraeder transition layin. The run concluded when Ethington

netted one free throw after being fouled while attempting an

ambitious flying one-handed baseline dunk. The ill-fated attempt

prompted a smile from Ethington, as well as laughter from the UCI

bench and several among the 1,825 spectators.

“That’s just the way I’ve always played,” said Ethington, whose

smile was as contagious as his energetic effort.

Gloger finished with 16 points to match Ethington for team-high

honors. Gloger also chipped in seven rebounds, four steals and four

assists.

Schraeder and Efevberha added 11 and 10 points, respectively, and

Efevberha hit both three-point tries, both before halftime, to help

set the tone.

It was the first time all season five Anteaters scored in double

digits, allowing the hosts to reach the 80-point plateau -- on 1980s

night, no less -- for only the third time this season, the first time

in 15 games.

UCI, which received bench points from seniors Matt Okoro (eight),

Stanislav Zuzak (five) and Aras Baskauskas (three), had averaged 55.9

points during the streak.

Jabril Hodges, who hit 5 of 8 three-pointers (the 49ers made 13 of

22 from threedom, including 6 of 8 in the first half), led the 49ers

with 17 points. Senior leading scorer Kevin Roberts added 16 for Long

Beach, which has now lost six straight.

ZOTS -- Though UC Irvine moved ahead of Long Beach State into sole

possession of eighth place, in a 10-team Big West Conference that

invites only its top eight to the conference tournament, the

Anteaters must avoid an eventual tie with the 49ers. Since the

Anteaters and 49ers split this season, the next head-to-head

tiebreaker would be best record against the team(s) highest in the

conference standings. At this point, Long Beach holds a win over

third-place UC Santa Barbara, while UCI is 0-1 against the Gauchos.

UCI and the 49ers are travel partners, meaning they each play the

same opponents in their four remaining conference games ... With 11

points Wednesday, 7-0 senior center Adam Parada moved past Johnny

Rogers (1984-86) into the No. 9 spot on the school’s all-time career

scoring list. Parada now has 1,258 career points and has moved up

seven spots on the school’s all-time list this season. His next

conquest is No. 8 Jeff Von Lutzow, who scored 1,284 from 1989-93 ...

With his four steals Wednesday, sophomore point guard Jeff Gloger

broke a three-way tie with Ben McDonald and Scott Brooks, both of

whom played in the NBA, to move into sole possession of the No. 2

spot on UCI’s all-time list (with 127). Jerry Green ranks first with

162 ... UCI has now won 7 of its last 9 against Long Beach State,

including four in a row at the Bren Center ... Greg Ethington had

made just two of his last 13 fouls shots, before netting 6 of 9

Wednesday ... UCI takes a break from conference play Saturday, when

it will visit New Mexico State as part of Bracket Buster Saturday.

The 1:05 p.m. matchup between former Big West rivals, is among 23

games meant to highlight mid-major programs. Ten games are being

televised on ESPN.

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Big West Conference

UC Irvine 80, Long Beach State 71

Long Beach State -- Roberts 16, Darby 3, M. Jackson 2, Hodges 17, Houston 6, Graham 11, Pearson 6, Bowens 6, A. Jackson 4. 3-pt. goals -- Hodges 5, Roberts 2, Houston 2, Bowens 2, Darby 1, Graham 1. Fouled out -- Roberts. Technicals -- None. UC Irvine

-- Ethington 16, Parada 11, Gloger 16, Schraeder 11, Efevberha 10, Okoro 8, Zuzak 5, Baskauskas 3. 3-pt. goals -- Efevberha 2, Zuzak 1, Schraeder 1. Fouled out -- None. Technicals -- None. Halftime -- UC Irvine, 43-35.

*--*