UCSB Men’s Basketball Drops Matchup With First-Place UC Irvine 76-61
The Gauchos Have Lost Three Consecutive Home Games
An opportunity to defeat first-place UC Irvine and climb the Big West standings got away from the UCSB men’s basketball team on Thursday night at the Thunderdome.
The visiting Anteaters grabbed control of the game midway through the first half and never looked back on their way to a 76-61 victory.
“Irvine is a really good team. They are a better team than us right now,” said UCSB head coach Joe Pasternack. “We have to keep getting better.”
The Gauchos are playing to get the best possible seed for the Big West Conference tournament in March where victory guarantees an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament, but have struggled to find consistency of late and have now lost three consecutive games at home.
“I just think we should just come out every game with the same intensity and the same fire to win,” said UCSB Forward Ariel Bland of the team’s struggles on its home court. Bland finished with eight points and eight rebounds in 22 minutes and was a bright sport for the Gauchos.
Ajay Mitchell finished with a game-high 17 points and Cole Anderson scored 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field, including 2-of-3 shooting from three-point range.
Four UC Irvine players reached double figures led by Pierre Crockrell, who tallied 14 points and seven assists.
UCSB (13-9 overall, 6-6 Big West) will host Cal State Northridge on Saturday, beginning at 7 p.m.