UC Riverside
UC Santa Barbara
Gauchos Defeat Highlanders, 81-71
2/25/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Senior guard Rickey Porter scored a game-high 24 points, but it wasn't enough as the UC Riverside Highlanders fell to the host UC Santa Barbara Gauchos, 81-71 at the Thunderdome in Goleta Saturday.
The Highlanders fell to 4-21 overall and 3-10 in the Big West. UCSB is now 13-12, 5-7.
Porter scored 20-plus points for the first time in his last eight games, draining 24, including four three pointers. He was 8-of-17 from the field and a perfect 4-of-4 from the free throw line. The Highlanders had four other players score in double figures, including senior forward Klaus Schille, who had a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Senior forward David Misko just missed the deed with 11 points and nine rebounds and senior guard Steve Williams added 10 ponts. The Highlanders shot 44.6% (25-of-56) from the field.
Santa Barbara was led by Cecil Brown, who had 19 points. Alex Harris and Cameron Goettsche came off the bench to score 15 and 14, respectively.
The Highlanders trailed by six at halftime, 34-28, but scored the first six points of the second half to tie things up at 34-34. UCSB used a 16-6 run to blow the margin up to 10 at 50-40 with 13:21 left. UCR did not quit, however, cutting the lead to three on three occassions, the final time at 70-67 with 2:20 left.
However, Alex Harris drained a pair of free throws with 1:51 left to make the margin five, and following a timeout, UCR turned the ball over and Brown converted it into a layup, making the bonus following a Misko foul, to give the Gauchos an eight point lead at 75-67 with 1:23 left, and the Highlanders could get no closer than six the rest of the way.
UCR committed just 11 turnovers, their second lowest total of the season, but the Gauchos were forced into just four.
