Saturday, November 15
4:00 PM
UC Riverside
1-0
75
vs
52
UC San Diego
0-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| UC San Diego | 24 | 28 | 52 |
| UC Riverside | 29 | 46 | 75 |
Photo by: Gabriel L. Acosta
Big Second Half Run Gives Men's Basketball 75-52 Win Over UCSD On Homecoming
11/15/2014 5:20:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Riverside—The UC Riverside Men's Basketball Team (1-0) ran off 21 unanswered points early in the second half Saturday afternoon, celebrating a 75-52 season-opening victory over UC San Diego in front of a near-capacity Homecoming crowd at the SRC Arena.
The Tritons took on Division I Loyola Marymount in the preseason, nearly knocking off the Lions on their home turf before falling 68-67, so heading into Saturday's game, the Highlanders knew they were in for a fight.
UC Riverside jumped on top early, though, scoring 13 of the first 17 points to take a nine-point lead with 4:55 gone off the clock. Junior transfer Jaylen Bland drained two three-pointers during the run, and Nick Gruninger added five points.
UCSD re-grouped, however, scoring the next six points to cut the UCR advantage to three.
After a brief Highlanders surge gave them a seven-point cushion with 9:17 to go in the period, the game turned into a defensive slugfest. UC Riverside managed just a pair of free throws over the next three-plus minutes as the Tritons scored just six points of their own.
As the clock ticked under five minutes, UC San Diego connected on back-to-back layups, one by Adam Klie and another by Drew Dyer, to cut the UCR lead to one, 25-24. The Highlanders scored the only two buckets between then and the break, entering the locker room up by five, 29-24.
The teams traded scoring opportunities through the first 1:07 of the second period, and that's when the Highlanders began to turn the game into a rout. It began innocently enough with Steven Thornton making one of two free throws with 18:42 on the clock, and ended seven minutes later with a 21-0 run which expanded the lead to 52-28. During that time, the Highlanders scored 21 unanswered points, forcing UC San Diego to miss eight shots and commit four turnovers.
A jumper by George Buaku finally ended the run, but the damage was done, and the Highlanders cruised to the 23-point victory.
Taylor Johns led all players with 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting while Bland had 17 points and Gruninger added 15 for UCR. Treavon Francis scored 10 points to lead the Tritons.
The Highlanders remain at home this week as they host Sacramento State on Monday beginning at 7 pm PT.
The Tritons took on Division I Loyola Marymount in the preseason, nearly knocking off the Lions on their home turf before falling 68-67, so heading into Saturday's game, the Highlanders knew they were in for a fight.
UC Riverside jumped on top early, though, scoring 13 of the first 17 points to take a nine-point lead with 4:55 gone off the clock. Junior transfer Jaylen Bland drained two three-pointers during the run, and Nick Gruninger added five points.
UCSD re-grouped, however, scoring the next six points to cut the UCR advantage to three.
After a brief Highlanders surge gave them a seven-point cushion with 9:17 to go in the period, the game turned into a defensive slugfest. UC Riverside managed just a pair of free throws over the next three-plus minutes as the Tritons scored just six points of their own.
As the clock ticked under five minutes, UC San Diego connected on back-to-back layups, one by Adam Klie and another by Drew Dyer, to cut the UCR lead to one, 25-24. The Highlanders scored the only two buckets between then and the break, entering the locker room up by five, 29-24.
The teams traded scoring opportunities through the first 1:07 of the second period, and that's when the Highlanders began to turn the game into a rout. It began innocently enough with Steven Thornton making one of two free throws with 18:42 on the clock, and ended seven minutes later with a 21-0 run which expanded the lead to 52-28. During that time, the Highlanders scored 21 unanswered points, forcing UC San Diego to miss eight shots and commit four turnovers.
A jumper by George Buaku finally ended the run, but the damage was done, and the Highlanders cruised to the 23-point victory.
Taylor Johns led all players with 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting while Bland had 17 points and Gruninger added 15 for UCR. Treavon Francis scored 10 points to lead the Tritons.
The Highlanders remain at home this week as they host Sacramento State on Monday beginning at 7 pm PT.
Team Stats
UCSD
UCRMBK
FG%
.365
.571
3FG%
.250
.500
FT%
.611
.643
RB
26
33
TO
13
11
STL
3
6
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
6
Pts
17
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
3
Pts
15
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
5
FGM
1
3FGM
0
FTM
3
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