UCI good with its last shot

Aaron Fitzgerald makes a three-pointer with 7.6 seconds left as Anteaters rally to end losing streak with Big West Conference win on the road.SAN LUIS OBISPO -- Ross Schraeder was denied the chance to be a hero for the UC Irvine men’s basketball team Saturday. Fortunately, someone else was ready to fill in.

Aaron Fitzgerald drilled a three-pointer with 7.6 seconds remaining as the Anteaters edged Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, 69-67, in UCI’s Big West Conference opener. The victory snapped a five-game losing streak for UCI, which hadn’t won since topping San Jose State, 68-58, on Dec. 3.

UCI (5-8, 1-0 in conference) got the ball with 39 seconds left after Trae Clark gave the Mustangs a 67-66 lead on a three-pointer. The Anteaters tried to set up a shot for Schraeder, their leading scorer, but were unable to get the ball to him.

Fitzgerald got open on the right side and hit the 25-foot shot for the lead. Clark missed a jumper in the lane with three seconds left, and Shamar Armstrong nabbed the rebound to secure the win.

“We were running a play for Ross Schraeder, but they were all over him and the play kind of broke down,” Fitzgerald said to reporters after the game. “Darren Fells set a screen and I just wanted to get a shot up as I knew the shot clock was winding down.”

The late heroics capped a remarkable second half for the Anteaters, who shot 77.8% from the field after halftime. UCI made all four of its second-half three-pointers, and converted on 12 of 14 free throws.

Cal Poly (4-9, 2-1) led by as many as 11 points and was up by nine in the second half before UCI rallied. Patrick Sanders, who scored a career-best 13 points, scored on a layup to cap a 9-0 run that tied the score at 53-53 with 5:41 remaining.

The score would be tied five more times down the stretch.

Darren Fells led the Anteaters with 14 points and six rebounds. The sophomore scored all eight of his second-half points in the final 3:35 of the game.

Armstrong added 12 points, making both of his three-point shots in the game.

Fitzgerald had eight assists and two steals to go with his nine points.

Schraeder didn’t attempt a shot in the first half and was held to nine points and one three-pointer. He needs three three-pointers to pass Jeff Herdman’s school career record of 201.

“We couldn’t have done much better offensively in the second half,” UCI Coach Pat Douglass told reporters. “Cal Poly defended us well and they obviously did a good job on Ross Schraeder ... We hadn’t won a game in a month, so hopefully we can build off this. It was a good win, being our conference opener on the road.”

Derek Stockalper led Cal Poly with 19 points, and Clark added a career-high 17 points.

The Anteaters visit UC Santa Barbara on Monday in a 7 p.m. game. The Gauchos defeated Long Beach State, 77-74, Saturday.

Big West Conference

UC Irvine 69,

Cal Poly SLO 67

Score by Halves