by SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – UC Irvine rallied from down 17 points to take a 58-55 lead with 2:42 to play but could not hold off the Gauchos, ultimately falling, 64-61 at the Thunderdome Saturday night.
Collin Welp made a pair of free throws followed by a long two-pointer from Evan Leonard to put UCI up, 58-55 with 2:42 to play. UCSB made 7-8 free throws down the stretch to retake the lead, 62-58. Welp hit a three with five seconds to play to bring UCI within one, 62-61, but UCSB made a pair of free throws in the final seconds to seal the 64-61 win.
UCI suffered its second conference loss (7-2) and falls to 15-10 on the season. UCSB improves to 16-8 overall and 5-4 in the Big West.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
> Brad Greene (Shoshone/Paiute) finished with a team-high 16 points while Leonard had 12. Greene also led the ‘Eaters on the boards, grabbing six
> UCI shot 42.8 percent (25-59) from the field overall and 28.6 percent (4-14) from distance
> The Gauchos were 3-11 (.273) from long range but made 21-25 free throws (.84) compared to UCI’s 7-8
> UCSB was led by Amadou Sow with a game-high 21 points
> UCI outrebounded UCSB 36-28 and held advantages in bench points (17-6) and points in the paint (30-26)
> The Gauchos scored 14 points off 12 UCI turnovers
First Half
> UCI opened with a 6-3 lead (17:13) before the Gauchos went on an 8-0 run to take a 13-6 lead at 14:10
> Greene made a hook shot jumper to bring UCI within one, 13-12 (11:54)
> UCSB responded with a 12-4 run to take a double-digit, 26-16, lead with 7:35 remaining
> Jeron Artest hit a three-pointer at 4:20 to make it, 30-22, before the Gauchos went on a 5-2 run down the stretch to take a 35-24 lead into the locker rooms
> Greene led UCI with eight points
Second Half
> UCSB continued its offensive attack to start the half, going up by as much as 17, 41-24, with 18:32 remaining
> UCI responded with a 14-5 run to cut the UCSB lead to seven, 47-40, with 11:34 to play. Greene capped the run with a layup in the paint
> Greene started a 12-2 run for the Anteaters that brought them within one, 53-52, with 5:25 remaining
> Greene made another layup to keep UCI within striking distance, 55-54, at 4:26
> Welp’s two made free throws followed by Leonard’s jumper gave UCI the lead, 58-55, before the Gauchos would close out the game down the stretch to earn the conference victory
NOTES
> Brad Greene has led the team in scoring for three-straight games
