UCI travels with no capital gains

Barry Faulkner

The UC Irvine men’s basketball team stuck it’s collective snout in

Sacramento State’s 1,400-seat Hornet’s Nest Saturday night and the

result was a 64-56 loss that is sure to sting throughout the

Anteaters’ two-week holiday haitus.

The Anteaters started sluggishly, came on strong in the second

half, but could not survive the swarming defense and three-point

shooting of the hosts, who ended a four-game losing skid to improve

to 4-5.

Hornet senior guard Brandon Guyton sank three three-pointers in

the first seven minutes, to help Sacramento State, No. 242 in the

Sagarin rankings of Division I programs, build an 18-7 lead.

Sacramento’s energetic man-to-man defense and overall intensity,

put UCI on its heels and into the crosshairs of Coach Pat Douglass,

who called several first-half timeouts to try to motivate his squad.

Douglass tried everything from a quizzical stare, to vein-popping

profanity to implore his team to compete more enthusiastically

against the fired-up Hornets before halftime.

Two more Sacramento three balls created a 26-13 advantage with

4:33 left in the first half and the Hornets took a 28-17 edge into

intermission.

UCI (5-4) closed methodically after the break,slicing the deficit

to 36-33, with 13:08 left in the game.

Two Jeff Gloger free throws with 7:48 remaining again whittled the

margin to three points, but consecutive three-pointers from freshman

Alex Bausley upped the lead to 48-39 with 6:05 left.

UCI freshman Mark Hill scored three points in a 7-2 Anteater run

that narrowed the game to four, but the Hornets went 14 of 16 from

the foul line, most coming in the double bonus, in the final 1:52 to

cement what could be its biggest win of the season.

Two Ross Scraeder three-pointers in the final minute maintained

some suspense, but a pair of UCI turnovers - they finished with 20 to

continue a negative early-season trend - helped deny UCI a victory

heading into its Big West Conference opener Jan. 3 at home against

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

Mike Efevberha led the Anteaters with 11 points, and his 4-of-8

field-goal shooting stood out for a squad that shot just 31.4% on the

night (16 of 51).

Gloger finished with nine points and eight rebounds, while Matt

Okoro chipped in 10 points and four boards for the visitors.

Adam Parada, UCI’s 7-foot senior center, scored seven points, but

collected a career-high-tying 15 rebounds, including nine in the

first 20 minutes.

Guyton finished with 12 points for the winners, for whom only

senior reserve Joseth Dawson (10) scored in double figures.

Bausley, who played just 14 mintues, made the most of his time

when it counted most. His steal set up a E.J. Harris transition layin

that put his team up, 50-45, with 4:34 left and half of his six

boards came at crunch time.

Sacramento State finished 19 of 52 from the field (36.5%), and was

outrebounded, 47-33. But the Hornets committed six fewer turnovers

than UCI.

ZOTS - Sacramento State freshman forward Alex Bausley literally

shot the lights out, when his three-quarter-court three-point attempt

to beat the first-half buzzer connected with the shot clock stationed

above the backboard and popped the unit’s plug out of tits outlet ...

UCI center Adam Parada had connected on 17 of 19 field-goal tries his

previous three games, but finished just 1 of 5 against the Hornets

...Hornets’ senior center Tony Champion had a simmilarly atypical

shooting night. The 6-foot-8, 260-pounder made 27 of 37 field-goal

attempts his first nine games (73%), only to connect on 2 of 5

Saturday. Two of his shots were blocked ... The Sacramento State

women’s team shot just 29% (15 of 51) and is now 0-10 this season,

after a 55-41 loss to UCI Saturday in a prelude to the men’s game.

But Hornets women’s coach Don Muscatell may be having making a bigger

difference at home. His 13-yar-old son, Drew, sank a half-court shot

during a halftime promotion Saturday.

*--*

Nonconference

Sacramento State 64, UC Irvine 56

UC Irvine - Zuzak 3, Okoro 10, Parada 7, Efevberha 11, Gloger 9, Schraeder 6, Ethington 5, Hill 4, Baskauskas 1.

3-pt. goals - Schraeder 2, Zuzak 1.

Fouled out - Gloger.

Technicals - None.

Sacramento State - Lange 3, Champion 4, Guyton 12, Jones 9, Freeman 5, Dawson 10, Bausley 8, Harris 6, Thompkins 4, Pugh 3.

3-pt. goals - Guyton 4, Bausley 2, Jones 1, Pugh 1.

Fouled out - Champion, Freeman.

Technicals - None.

*--*