SAN LUIS OBISPO — The UC Irvine men’s basketball team had a second half to forget against an opponent that often lives and dies from the perimeter.
The Anteaters were outscored 50-31 after halftime in a 79-73 loss to Cal Poly on Thursday night, tumbling into third place in the Big West standings following a barrage of 3-point baskets and second-chance points from the Mustangs at the Motts Athletics Center.
The Anteaters (16-9 overall, 9-4 Big West) held a 42-29 lead at halftime then saw Cal Poly catch fire from long range – shooting 8 for 19 from behind the arc in the second half.
Cal Poly shot just 39.4% from the floor for the night, but 14 of the Mustangs’ 26 baskets were 3-pointers. Cal Poly also topped UCI on the boards, outrebounding the Anteaters 51-40 and scoring 19 second-chance points.
“Tough loss for our team tonight,” UCI coach Russell Turner said. “Credit to Cal Poly, they were the tougher, more competitive group. They dominated us in the second half. I feel badly that I couldn’t get our team turned around in the right direction the last 20 minutes. Fifty points in the second half were the reason we lost.
“We got dominated on the boards, which surprises me, but we have seen this before with this group. We didn’t do a good enough job in that area. Second-chance points were the story of the game. We gave them up and didn’t get them. That was the difference tonight.”
Guards Jurian Dixon and Derin Saran each had 19 points to pace UCI, which now sits a game behind first-place Hawaii (18-5, 10-3) and a half-game behind UC Santa Barbara (17-8, 10-4). Dixon tied his career-high with six 3-pointers, while Saran knocked down three of his own to go with five rebounds, three assists and four steals.
Kyle Evans had his seventh double-double of the season with 11 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots. Andre Henry added 10 points and three steals, and Tama Isaac contributed eight points, six rebounds, six assists and four steals.
UCI used a 12-0 run to open a 35-25 lead in the first half and held a 13-point advantage at the intermission, but Cal Poly found momentum early in the second half. The Mustangs (10-16, 6-8) went on a 14-1 run to grab their first lead since midway through the first half.
Saran stole an inbounds pass and made a 3-pointer on the other end to give UCI a 52-51 lead with 10:32 left, but another surge gave the hosts a 58-52 lead. UCI battled back to tie the score at 60-all but Cal Poly hit a pair of 3-pointers for a 68-62 lead with 3:47 remaining.
The teams traded 3-pointers, but then Cal Poly hit two more to open a 74-65 lead with two minutes left. The Anteaters generated a few turnovers and got a pair of 3-pointers from Saran and Dixon, but the Mustangs made their free throws down the stretch and held on.
“I think our team felt at halftime that we had this game in our comfort zone,” said Turner, whose team allowed 50 points in the second half of its loss at UCSB last weekend. “Cal Poly is a young team and they were more determined and tougher tonight than we were.”
Guzman Vasilic scored a career-high 18 points and shot 4 for 7 from deep to pace Cal Poly, while Austin Goode added a career-best 17 points and 10 rebounds and Cayden Ward finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Peter Bandelj contributed 14 points, shooting 4 for 8 from 3-point range.
UCI’s 14 steals were its second-best total of the season, and the Anteaters scored 35 points off of 21 Cal Poly turnovers. UCI made 11 3-pointers of its own but shot just 37% from the field overall (26 for 70).
UP NEXT
UCI hosts Cal State Fullerton on Saturday, 7 p.m.
BIG WEST STANDINGS
Through Thursday, Feb. 12
Team – Overall, Big West
Hawaii – 18-5, 10-3
UC Santa Barbara – 17-8, 10-4
UC Irvine – 16-9, 9-4
Cal State Northridge – 15-10, 8-5
UC Davis – 15-10, 8-6
Cal State Fullerton – 13-13, 8-6
UC San Diego – 17-9, 7-7
Cal Poly (SLO) – 10-16, 6-8
Long Beach State – 8-17, 4-9
UC Riverside – 8-18, 3-11
Cal State Bakersfield – 8-18, 2-12
