‘Eaters hold off Titans

Barry Faulkner

UC Irvine men’s basketball coach Pat Douglass said his team probably

couldn’t play any better than it did on its way to a 48-30 halftime

lead Saturday night at Cal State Fullerton.

But it was the Anteaters’ second half that may have been the most

impressive part of a 97-81 Big West Conference victory that may prove

to be a season savor for a team that came in on a four-game losing

streak.

UCI (7-6, 2-4 in conference) survived a pulsating run from the

Titans (8-4, 3-2) early in the second half that eventually pulled the

hosts to within 67-66 with 10:24 remaining.

Fullerton, answering a first-half shooting display by the

visitors, who hit 7 of 10 three-pointers and shot 58.6% before

halftime, made seven of its first eight second-half field-goal tries,

as well as its first seven attempts from three-point range. The

Titans eventually sank 9 of their first 10 three balls after

intermission.

The final three-pointer of that explosive stretch, during which

the Titans scored 36 points in 9:36, came from Bobby Brown at the top

of the key to shave Irvine’s once- formidable lead to a single point.

But Fullerton, perhaps drained by the intensity their comeback

required, failed to connect from threedom the next 10:16, allowing

Irvine to regroup and rebuild its lead.

Regroup would be a good word to describe the Anteaters’ mission

following a disheartening 68-55 conference loss Thursday at UC

Riverside.

“We were disappointed and embarrassed [about Thursday’s

performance],” said UCI junior guard Jeff Gloger, who scored a

career-high 20 points to help fuel Saturday’s win. “We had a

players-only meeting [Friday]. We went around the room, everyone had

something to say and I think it was beneficial.” Gloger said players

and coaches alike were “just excited to play [Saturday],” though it

was not immediately apparent as the hosts seized leads of 7-0 and

10-2, before UCI responded to take a 16-14 advantage.

The Anteaters used three-point shooting and a faster tempo to help

turn the tide.

Junior guard Ross Schraeder drained four first-half threes in five

attempts, while junior point guard Aaron Fitzgerald and freshman

reserve Davis Baker each made both of their three-point tries before

intermission.

UCI finished 9 of 14 from beyond the arc (64.3%), while Fullerton

tied its school single-game record for three balls (14 of 25).

Schraeder finished 5 of 8 from threedom on the way to 17 points,

while Fitzgerald, who continued to push the tempo in the final 20

minutes, scored 14 of his game-high 22 points after the break.

Fitzgerald added a season-high 10 assists.

Senior Greg Ethington had 11 points, seven rebounds and two

blocked shots, while Gloger added seven boards for the winners.

Baker’s 10 points in 10 minutes were a season-high, after he

produced a then-season-best seven points in nine minutes against

Riverside.

“[UCI’s] perimeter guys were better than ours, and I thought ours

were pretty good,” Fullerton Coach Bob Burton said. “We just couldn’t

stop [the Anteaters]. They came out and just took it to us and played

great. They shot it well, they were tough and they were really ready

to go.” After Brown’s three cut the deficit to one and heightened a

frenzy among most of the 1,472 in attendance, Fitzgerald hit a

16-footer on the baseline. Fitzgerald proceeded to score eight points

during a 10-0 run that ended with his layin with 6:48 remaining.

Fullerton never got closer than nine the rest of the way.

“That was one of Aaron Fitzgerald’s better games and, obviously, I

thought it was Jeff Gloger’s best game of the year,” UCI Coach Pat

Douglass said. “[Gloger] rebounded the ball, played defense and [his

scoring] was a high point.

“That was as good a [first] half as we can play and we needed it

against a team that is that explosive as that. Before, we haven’t

handled it real well when teams have made runs, but I thought we kept

our composure when they made that [second-half] run.” Fullerton,

playing for the first time without Hardy Aspirilla, who suffered a

season-ending knee injury Thursday, had won three in a row and five

of its last six.

“You’ve got to credit [Fullerton for the comeback],”Gloger said.

“I didn’t see a big drop off in our intensity between the first half

and the second. We knew they were due to make a run and they did just

that. But this win is big. It’s the end of that losing streak and,

hopefully, it can carry over.” Irvine’s point total was its best

since scoring 97 in a home win over San Diego Dec. 13, 2000, a span of 127 games.

Brown, leading the conference in scoring and assists, led the

Titans with 24 points and nine assists, while Yaphett King chipped in

21 points. Brown, King and reserve Jermaine Harper had four

three-pointers apiece.

ZOTS - UC Irvine junior guard Ross Schraeder’s five three-pointers

Saturday gave him 120 for his career, allowing him to surpass Jerry

Green and Mike Hood (both 116) and claim the No. 6 spot on the

school’s all-time list ... The Anteaters had averaged 60.4 points

over their first five Big West Conference games and had shot just

38.5% during their four-game losing streak. They finished at 58.9%

Saturday.

Big West Conference

UC Irvine 97, Cal State Fullerton 81

UC Irvine - Fells 3, Gloger 20, Ethington 11, Schraeder 17, Fitzgerald 22, Baker 10, Sanders 6, Campbell 4, Armstrong 4.

3-pt. goals - Schraeder 5, Fitzgerald 2, Baker 2.

Fouled out - None.

Technicals - None.

Cal State Fullerton - King 21, J. Brown 15, Quinet 0, B. Brown 24,

Holmes 6, Harper 14, Burns 1.

3-pt. goals - B. Brown 4, King 4, Harper 4.

Fouled out - None.

Technicals - None.

Halftime - UC Irvine 48-30.