Trojans dial in to down ‘Eaters

Barry Faulkner

When it comes to building experiences, the youthful UC Irvine men’s

basketball team can cross holding its own for one half on the road

against a Pac-10 opponent off its list.

But the rest of Monday’s 90-70 nonconference loss to USC at the

Sports Arena produced only fleeting positives for the Anteaters.

UCI (1-1) led, 37-36, at halftime, showing toughness, poise and,

well, even some of the inexperience Coach Pat Douglass knows full

well he can expect from a team with only one senior and four

returners.

“We had a chance to capitalize in the first half,” Douglass said.

“We missed some layups and it really hurt us when [6-foot-8 senior

Greg] Ethington picked up his third foul [sitting the final 6:08

before intermission]. He is our only experienced post.”

Douglass also acknowledged USC’s sizzling outside shooting. The

Trojans (1-0) made 8 of 14 three-point attempts in the first 20

minutes and finished 13 of 24 (54.2%) from beyond the arc.

USC junior transfer Dwayne Shackleford hit 3 of 4 from threedom in

the final 3:28 of the first half, creating a spark that carried over

to the second half.

USC, which has now won all nine home openers under Coach Henry

Bibby, opened the second half with a 12-2 run and never looked back.

“They shot the three well,” Douglass said. “We knew they had an

inside game, so we wanted to try and make them bury the outside

shot.”

Errick Craven and Lodrick Stewart matched Shackleford’s three

threeballs for the game, and four other Trojans connected on

three-pointers as well.

USC went the final 13:50 of the first half without a 2-point field

goal, but its long-range accuracy helped it keep pace with a UCI team

that led by as many as seven before intermission.

With veteran starters Ethington and Jeff Gloger managing just two

points each, juniors Aaron Fitzgerald and Ross Schraeder paced the

visitors with 11 and 10 first-half points, respectively.

Fitzgerald, in his second game with UCI, finished with 24 points

while Schraeder added 15.

Ethington, who fouled out and played just 19 minutes, had seven

points and a team-high eight rebounds.

Gloger committed nine of UCI’s 20 turnovers, while Fitzgerald

added five.

“I liked our effort and the fact that we came with a purpose and

we weren’t intimidated,” Douglass said. “But we had too many

turnovers from our guards.”

Craven and Gabriel Pruitt led six Trojans in double figures with

13 points each and senior Jeff McMillan chipped in 12 points and a

game-high 12 boards.

The loss was the 10th straight on the road for UCI, which went

1-11 last season as the visiting team.

The Anteaters return to action Saturday at UCLA.

*--*

Nonconference

USC 90, UC Irvine 70

UC Irvine -- Fells 6, Ethington 7, Fitzgerald 24, Gloger 8, Schraeder 15, Campbell 0, Baker 0, Armstrong 2, Sanders 2, Bruckner 0, Metelski 6.

3-pt. goals -- Fitzgerald 3, Schraeder 1.

Fouled out -- Ethington.

Technicals -- None.

USC -- Stewart 11, McMillan 12, O’Neil 9, E. Craven 13, D. Craven 10, Young 4, Curtis 0, Guenther 6, Penrose 0, Moore 0, Shackleford 12, Pruitt 13, Gaudino 0, Willis 0.

3-pt. goals -- E. Craven 3, Stewart 3, D. Craven 1, O’Neil 1, Young 1, Shackleford 3, Pruitt 1.

Fouled out -- D. Craven.

Technicals -- None.

Halftime -- UCI, 37-36.

*--*