by LAS VEGAS, Nev. – UC Irvine gave up a season-high 86 points in an 86-74 loss to Detroit Mercy in its first game of the MGM Resorts Main Event, Sunday at Clark High School.
UCI suffers its third-straight loss falling to 3-4 on the season. Detroit Mercy picked up its first win of the year and moves to 1-3 overall.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
> The Anteaters had five players finish in double-digit scoring including Tommy Rutherford with a team-high 14 points
> Eyassu Worku had 12 points and five assists while Collin Welp finished with a double-double (11 points and a career-high 18 rebounds)
> Brad Greene (Shoshone-Paiute) and John Edgar Jr. each finished with 10 points
> UCI struggled from the three-point line finishing 4-24 (.167). The ‘Eaters shot a season low 39.1 percent (27-69) from the floor overall
> Detroit Mercy’s Antoine Davis finished with a game-high 23 points
> The Titans made 15 three-pointers finishing 15-32 (.469) from behind the arc and shot 41.8 percent (23-55) overall from the field
> UCI outscored Detroit Mercy 34-6 in the paint however, the Titans held advantages in points off turnovers (14-6) and fast break points (16-10). The Anteaters out-rebounded the Detroit Mercy 38-32
First Half
> Neither team would gain more than a three-point advantage as the game remained knotted, 10-10, at the first media timeout (15:38)
> The Titans made back-to-back three’s to go up by seven, 25-18, with 9:22 to play
> A layup and a made free throw from Welp followed by a layup from Austin Johnson cut Detroit Mercy’s lead to two, 27-25, with 8:03 to play
> Devin Cole hit a three-pointer with 6:53 remaining to give UCI a 30-29 lead
> The Titans went on a 16-4 run to take a double-digit lead, 44-34, with 2:44 remaining
> Worku and Isaiah Lee hit back-to-back three-pointers down the stretch to bring the ‘Eaters within six, 48-42, at the half
Second Half
> Aiden Krause and Welp each had three points in a 6-0 UCI run that brought the ‘Eaters within four, 55-51 (12:20)
> The Titans answered with a 10-0 run to break open the lead, 69-54, with 9:25 remaining
> An Edgar Jr. layup started a 12-2 run for the Anteaters to make it 71-58 with just over five minutes to play
> UCI stayed within six points, 74-68, with 4:03 remaining but Detroit Mercy used a 14-4 run, aided by back-to-back three’s down the stretch to seal the 12-point, 86-74, win
UP NEXT
> UCI will play in the final game of the MGM Resorts Main Event against Louisiana Lafayette, Tuesday Nov. 26 at 1 p.m
