UCRMBB Martin Dribbling
Carlos Puma
61
UC Davis UCD 14-18,8-8 Big West
66
Winner UC Riverside UCR 17-15,7-9 Big West
UC Davis UCD
14-18,8-8 Big West
61
Final
66
UC Riverside UCR
17-15,7-9 Big West
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
UC Davis UCD 24 37 61
UC Riverside UCR 31 35 66

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Highlanders 66-61 Victory vs. UC Davis on Senior Night Ties Program Best with 17th Win of Season

Presented by Altura Credit Union

Altura Credit Union

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Dikymbe "DK" Martin launched his Senior Night with six first-half three pointers, Arinze Chidom sank four straight free throws in the final 19 seconds and UC Riverside held off UC Davis' furious second-half charge to beat the Aggies, 66-61, Saturday at SRC Arena.

The win sends the Highlanders as the No. 6 seed into the Big West Conference, where they will face No. 3 UC Santa Barbara in a Thursday, March 12, quarterfinal at 2:30 p.m. at the Honda Center in Anaheim.

After seeing its lead grow to as much as 20 points mid-way through the second half, then get whittled down to three points with under a minute remaining, the Highlanders ultimately led wire-to-wire and never trailed for their third straight win over UC Davis. Limiting the Aggies to 38 percent shooting on defense, UC Riverside found the resolve to answer back each time UC Davis threatened to take a lead in the homestretch, punctuated by a block with 5 seconds to play by Khyber Kabellis (6 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks) as Ezra Manjon went to the rim. 

Chidom, who finished with 26 points on 9-for-13 shooting to lead all scorers, sank his last two free throws (7-of-8) after grabbing his fifth rebound, and the Highlanders reached their team goal to match the win total of the 2008-09 team, which finished at 17-13. This year's team can now set a new season mark for wins with a quarterfinal victory at the Big West Tournament.

"I'm just so glad we could come away with a close game, because that's what we need," said head coach David Patrick, who had seen his team come up short in its last six losses by a combined total of only 12 points. "Big free throws and defensive stops -- I'm just so glad we fought through to the end.

Martin, a senior from Riverside, led the Highlanders' scoring from beyond the arc with his six first-half treys and finished with 20 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 1 block. As a team, UC Riverside finished 11-for-24 (45 percent) from long range against an Aggies team that led the league in 3-point defensive field-goal percentage (33 percent). The Highlanders' No. 9 nationally ranked scoring defense, which allowed opponents 60.6 points entering Saturday's game, left UC Davis at 10 points under its season scoring average in the win. Joe Mooney led the Aggies with 24 points.

Now looking to the conference tournament, UC Riverside must find a way to get over the hump after two close losses to UC Santa Barbara in the regular season, 65-63 on the road Jan. 25 and 65-60 at home Feb. 27th.

"Obviously, it's one game at a time, but this Big West Conference is wide open," coach Patrick said. "We're in condition, we have depth, we've got a resilient group and we can play different styles of ball. We're just hopeful we can put our best foot forward come Thursday afternoon."

NOTES
Head coach David Patrick on the Big West Conference Quarterfinals:
"Obviously, it's one game at a time, but this Big West Conference is wide open. We're in condition, we have depth, we've got a resilient group and we can play different styles of ball. We're just hopeful we can put our best foot forward come Thursday afternoon."

Before Saturday night's Senior Game, head coach David Patrick said of his roster, "I hope to play nine, 10 would be great." Ten players got into the game, including the team's two final-year players, senior Dikymbe Martin and graduate student Khyber Kabellis. The two starters presented flowers to their families on the court prior to the game.

UCRMBB-Seniors

Saturday was also Riverside Unified School District (RUSD) Appreciation Night, presented by Altura Credit Union. Employees, students and family members from the Riverside Unified School District received free admission.