SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. - UC Riverside found itself in a similar situation to last year's regular season finale with Big West Championship seeding on the line, but Saturday's gritty 73-72 overtime win at Cal Poly once again proved that this year's team is built differently.
The Highlanders, who will officially enter next week's Big West Championships at the Dollar Loan Center as three seed for the second time in three years, needed every ounce of gusto they had to secure a final regular record of 21-11 and momentum heading into Henderson.
"We knew we had to fight for this one," said head coach Mike Magpayo, whose UCR squad finished the regular season winners of five of the final six. "I'm proud of our guys' grit to bring some aggression but still have elite poise down the stretch. I believe that this collection of experiences will be hugely valuable to us in the Big West Championships. The ability to find a way under any circumstance is something this team has proven over and over again."
UC Riverside outrebounded the Mustangs 40-29 on the night, moving to 7-2 when reaching the 40-rebound mark. Zyon Pullin, in his final regular season contest as a Highlander, accounted for 10 of those boards despite fouling out in the second half. Pullin picked up a double double along the way with an added 28 points, three assists and a steal.
The Pleasant Hill native also moved up the UCR record books in a number of categories, passing Larry Cunningham (2004-08) for fourth on the program's Division I career minutes list and himself on single-season assists.
Also rewriting the record book was Flynn Cameron, whose five assists pushed him past Kareem Nitoto (2010-11) for fifth in UCR's single-season Division I history.
With Pullin out of the picture, Lachlan Olbrich stepped in and took over the extra period for UCR's offense. The Aussie reeled in seven of UCR's 11 points in the overtime period - including the go-ahead three with 19 seconds left in overtime - after scoring just seven points in the previous 40 minutes combined.
Olbrich also chipped in seven rebounds and three steals. He, Cameron and Pullin combined for 58 of UC Riverside's 73 points.
UC Riverside turns its attention to next week's Big West Championships in Henderson, where the No. 3 Highlanders will battle No. 6 UC Davis in the quarterfinals on Thursday, March 6 at 8:30 p.m. on ESPN+ and SiriusXM 381.
