UCI rally halted by Brown

GOLETA — Five days after rallying for its first win in 12 tries after trailing at halftime, the UC Irvine men’s basketball team made a valiant second-half run at host UC Santa Barbara in a Big West Conference game Thursday night at the Thunderdome.

But when it came to second-half valor, UCSB guard Cecil Brown, in his sixth season with the program, pulled seniority on the Anteaters, helping the Gauchos hold on for a 71-62 triumph.

Brown, who missed two seasons with injuries — prompting the special extra redshirt year that extended the 6-foot-4 senior’s eligibility to a sixth collegiate campaign — came in averaging 7.9 points per game. But after UCI (11-14, 5-6 in conference) used a 12-2 run to pull within 55-54 with 4:47 left in the game, Brown simply took over.

He made a spinning runner with 4:21 remaining, then nailed turnaround jumpers from 10 and 14 feet on the next two Santa Barbara possessions to personally account for a 6-0 spurt by the Gauchos (15-6, 6-2).

After two free throws by UCI’s Patrick Sanders, Brown, whom Coach Bob Williams said averaged 34 points per game at Canoga Park High in the 2000-2001 season, converted a four-point play to cap a 10-point personal explosion in 2:33 that put the hosts up, 65-56.

Brown, who scored 21 of his season-high 23 points after intermission, capped his night by sinking four free throws in the final 37 seconds.

“Cecil Brown has made a lot of key buckets against us [in his career], but never more so than tonight,” UCI Coach Pat Douglass said, “especially down the stretch. He took over the game and we don’t have a player like that who can take over from the perimeter. [Brown] had a remarkable game and he was the difference in the second half.”

Brown, who led the Gauchos in scoring last season (13.5 ppg), has been more of a playmaker this season. And while he led the hosts with four assists, it was his ability to pour in points that ended the Anteaters’ comeback bid.

“[Brown] is an unselfish player and person, but when he’s hitting shots like that and fading away like he’s Michael Jordan, and making tremendous shots, like a four-point play, why not shoot the ball?” said UCSB guard James Powell. “If I was making shots like that, I’d be doing the same thing.”

Said UCSB Coach Bob Williams: “Cecil gets hot. I’ve seen him score 16 points in the first quarter of a high school game. He’s a really explosive scorer and he’s been showing spurts like that in practice.”

UCI relied on Sanders (a team-high 19 points) and Chuma Awaji (18) for most of its scoring, as UCSB concentrated on crowding Darren Fells and Mark Kelley inside.

Fells was just one of six from the field on his way to six points, though he paced the visitors with 10 rebounds.

Kelley had just four points and five rebounds in 19 minutes. He was two of four from the field.

Still, UCI outscored the Gauchos in the paint, 14-12, and earned a 39-26 rebounding advantage, primarily as a result of superior hustle, Williams said.

UCI, however, committed 18 turnovers, twice as many as Santa Barbara, and the ‘Eaters finished 21 of 53 from the field (39.6%), while UCSB shot 46.8% (22 of 47).

“I thought, going in, we had to shoot the three well,” Douglass said. “We were eight for 21 [38.1%], which is not a bad number. But we are capable some nights of better. We had to really get hot from the three, because I knew they were going to double the post. We made some threes, but not enough.”

UCSB used a 10-0 run late in the first half to assert itself, on the way to a 36-28 halftime edge.

But UCI kept working the ball inside out, and attacking the rim and the glass, while also buckling down, defensively, to close the gap after the break.

“I was proud of the kids,” Douglass said. “We battled. But Santa Barbara is having an excellent year and playing well at both ends of the floor. You have to have your A game for 40 minutes and we didn’t quite have our A game for the 40 minutes like we needed.”

UCI, and Sanders in particular, earned praise from both coaches for limiting UCSB junior guard Alex Harris, the conference’s leading scorer coming in (20.7 ppg), to 14 points on three-of-nine field-goal shooting.

Harris, however, was seven of seven from the foul line, where the Gauchos netted 20 of 26.

UCI was 12 of 17 from the free-throw line.

Big West ConferenceUC Irvine-- Sanders 19, Awaji 18, Fells 6, Campbell 6, Kelley 4, DeCasas 3, Templeton 3, Hunter 3.

UC Santa Barbara 71,

UC Irvine 62

3-pt. goals -- Awaji 2, Campbell 2, Hunter 1, DeCasas 1, Templeton 1, Sanders 1.

Fouled out -- Campbell.

Technicals -- None.

UC Santa Barbara -- Brown 23, Harris 14, Devine 11, Powell 10, Elliott 5, Turner 4, Joyner 3, Bidas a Moute 1.

3-pt. goals -- Brown 2, Powell 2, Devine 1, Joyner 1, Harris 1.

Fouled out -- Turner.

Technicals -- None.

Halftime -- 36-28, UCSB.