Irvine, CA—The UC Riverside Men's Basketball Team faces its first road test of the Big West Conference season this Saturday as the Highlanders travel to UC Irvine for an 8 pm PT tip against the Anteaters. The game is being televised nationally on ESPNU.
UCR (9-8, 0-1) has lost three straight games, including a heart-breaking, seven-point loss to Cal State Fullerton on Saturday (
box score/
recap). The Highlanders led by as many as 20 in the second half, and by 19 with just under 12 minutes to go, but the Titans came storming back to pick up a 79-73 win in the first conference game of the season for both teams.
Jaylen Bland paced the team with 19 points, while Secean Johnson added 17 points, seven rebounds and five assists. Taylor Johns and Malik Thames also score in double figures with 15 and 11 points respectively.
Bland drained three three-pointers against Fullerton, and ranks ninth in the nation in made three-pointers per game at 3.53. He also ranks third in the Big West in scoring and fourth in steals per game.
The Anteaters are 12-5 on the season, and 1-0 in the Big West following their 76-55 win over UC Davis Thursday. They are led by 7-6 Mamadou Ndiaye who averages 12.0 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.56 blocks per game. Luke Nelson also averages doubles figures at 11.8 points per game, but Irvine's calling card is its defense where it holds opponents to 64.1 points per game and 38.4 percent shooting from the field.
Picked to win the Big West in preseason media polling, the Anteaters' lone common opponent with UC Riverside is LMU. Irvine beat the Lions, 77-52, in the second game of the season, and is a perfect 6-0 at home.
The Highlanders are 24-35 all-time against UC Irvine (
view results), and have dropped six of the last seven to the 'Eaters. The teams split their regular season meetings a year ago, and Irvine beat UC Riverside in the first round of the 2015 conference tournament, 63-54 (
box score/
recap).
