Riverside—The UC Riverside Men's Basketball Team heads up the coast this weekend looking to move back over the .500 mark with games at UC Santa Barbara on Thursday, January 22 and at Cal Poly on Saturday, January 24. Both games tip at 7 pm PT.
The Highlanders picked up their second conference win of the season on Saturday before a national-television audience as Steven Thornton poured in a career-high 22 points on ESPNU (
box score/
recap).
Taylor Johns (15.9 points per game) and Jaylen Bland (15.1) continue to lead the UC Riverside offense, but Thornton has emerged as the Highlanders most consistent scoring option of late averaging 12.2 points per game over his last 12 games.
Bland continues his assault on UCR's single-season made three-pointers chart, and is on pace to tie the school record of 100 set by Maurice Pullum in the 1988-89 season. Johns ranks sixth in the league in scoring, second in rebounding and second in blocks.
UC Santa Barbara has been hovering around the .500 mark for most of the season falling to 8-9 and 1-2 in conference with losses last week at home to CSUN, 74-63, and at Long Beach State, 69-53.
Last year's Big West Player of the Year, Alan Williams, leads the Gauchos offense this season, averaging a double-double with 17.1 points an 11.6 rebounds per game. He also paces the league in blocked shots.
Three other members of the squad are scoring in double figures—Michael Bryson (12.4), John Green (10.4), and Gabe Vincent (10.0).
The Highlanders are 7-28 all-time against the Gauchos including 0-19 all-time at Santa Barbara (
view results). UCR almost broke that road losing streak last season, falling 55-54 at the Thunderdome (
box score/
recap).
