Highlanders Sink Cal State Bakersfield on Buzzer Beater

Thursday, February 8

Riverside, Calif.

7:00 p.m.

University of California, Riverside

9-15,4-8Big West

Cal State Bakersfield

9-14,4-8Big West

Team	1	2	F
CSU Bakersfield	30	33	63
UC Riverside	30	35	65

Highlanders Sink Cal State Bakersfield on Buzzer Beater

2/8/2024 10:26:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

RIVERSIDE, Calif. - UC Riverside battled Cal State Bakersfield all night inside the SRC Arena down the final shot, a fadeaway from Kyle Owens that gave UCR a 65-63 win on Thursday night in Riverside.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Nate Pickens was the go-to Highlander early with half of UCR's points early on, going perfect from the field with a pair of field goals and threes in addition to a 1-for-2 foul line clip.
Owens hit a turnaround hook shot at 5:55 to bring the Highlanders to within a point. The Montana transfer checked in at 7:41 and immediately grabbed a defensive rebound a few minutes before recording his first points of the night.
Ben Griscti ended the half hitting three of his final four field goals to help UCR go into halftime tied with the Roadrunners.
UCR and CSUB were neck and neck to begin the second half and the Highlanders pulled ahead with a pair of technical free throws from Isaiah Moses. Moses later sped through traffic down the lane for an and one and completed the three-point play from the foul line to give UCR the 60-58 lead.
UC Riverside used a 14-3 run in the second half to pull ahead midway through the frame.
Owens put the dagger into the win with a fadeaway jumper at the buzzer to give UCR the season split.

HIGHLANDER HIGHLIGHTS

Thursday's buzzer beater gave UCR its fourth straight home win over the Roadrunners and fifth out of seven overall.
UCR tied a season high with four double-digit scorers on the night, paced by a game-high 18 points from Griscti.
UC Riverside pounded the offensive boards on Thursday with a 16-4 edge, limiting Bakersfield to just one offensive rebound after halftime. The Roadrunners' 30 rebounds were the second fewest allowed by UCR against a Big West opponent this season.

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