UC Irvine Travels to Long Beach State, Hosts UC Riverside in Homecoming Game
Feb. 25, 2009
Complete Release in PDF Format 
UC IRVINE (10-17, 6-7) vs. LONG BEACH STATE (13-12, 8-4)
Thursday, February 26, 2009
7:05 p.m. (PST)
Walter Pyramid (4,200) - Long Beach, Calif.
Series Record: LBSU leads 49-31
Last Meeting: LBSU won 67-63 (1/31/09 at Irvine)
Radio: KUCI/88.9 FM (Sirius Satellite Radio Channel 126)
Mark Roberts, play-by-play (15th season)
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UC IRVINE vs. UC RIVERSIDE
Saturday, February 28, 2009 (Homecoming)
7:35 p.m. (PST)
Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
Series Record: UCI leads 27-17
Last Meeting: UCI won 71-66 (1/29/09 at Riverside)
Radio: KUCI/88.9 FM
Mark Roberts, play-by-play (15th season)
Brian Underwood, analyst
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UC Irvine heads into the final stretch of the Big West Conference schedule with three games in the final two weeks of the regular season.
The Anteaters, who are in seventh in the conference, travel to first-place Long Beach State for a "Black & Blue Rivalry" game Thursday night (7:05) before hosting UC Riverside in the Homecoming game Saturday evening at 7:35 in the Bren Events Center. Saturday will be the final home appearance for UCI seniors Kevin Bland and Brett Lauer, who will be recognized prior to the game.
UCI travels to Cal State Fullerton Mar. 7 for a 5:05 p.m. game on Fox Sports Net West before competing in the Big West Conference Tournament Mar. 11-14 at the Anaheim Convention Center.
The `Eaters picked up two wins last week, defeating Cal State Northridge, 73-51, last Wednesday night in the Bren Center and Hawai'i, 76-70, in a non-conference contest Saturday evening in Honolulu.
WISE TOP-SCORING FROSH IN THE BIG WEST: Freshman forward Eric Wise, who averaged 18.0 points and 9.5 rebounds in the two victories last week, has put up the numbers worthy of serious consideration for Big West Freshman of the Year honors.
Last year`s Riverside County Player of the Year at King High School is the top-scoring freshman in the Big West with a 13.6 average that leads UCI and ranks sixth in the league. He also is sixth in field-goal percentage (.434) and eighth in rebounding (6.0).
In league games, he is second in offensive rebounds per game (2.54), sixth in scoring (14.7) and eighth in rebounding (6.2).
Wise, who has started the last 26 games, has scored in double figures 19 times this season with four 20-point games. He scored a career-high 25 points in the Jan. 3 win over Cal State Fullerton. His overall scoring average of 13.6 is the highest for a UCI freshman since Kevin Simmons averaged 14.9 points in 1995.
Wise's father, Francois, was an All-American player at Long Beach State and his uncle, Willie Wise, was a standout in the ABA in the 1970s.
HUNTER PASSES BROOKS FOR 5TH IN CAREER TREYS: Junior guard Michael Hunter has 55 threes this season and 144 in his career to rank fifth at UCI. With two three-balls at Hawai'i last Saturday night, he passed Scott Brooks (142), current coach of the NBA's Oklahoma City Thunder.
Hunter, who ranks second on the team with an 11.7 scoring average, had a career-high 22 points in the Feb. 12 loss at UC Davis, hitting 11 of 12 free throws. He is averaging 15.0 points over the last four games. He leads the `Eaters with 37 steals on the season, recording 12 in the past three games. Hunter ranks sixth all-time at UCI with 110 thefts, 10 behind No. 5 Mike Hess (120 from 1985-88).
Hunter ranks second in the Big West in free-throw percentage (.875) for all games, and he is fourth in steals (1.42) and in three-point field goals made per game (2.12). In league games only, he ranks first in steals (2.00), fourth in free-throw percentage (.853) and fifth in three-point field goals made per game (2.33).
LAUER LEADS BIG WEST IN THREE-POINT SHOOTING: Senior guard Brett Lauer, who has hit a team-high 60 treys this season, is shooting 51.3 percent to lead the Big West Conference for all games. He would also rank No. 1 in the nation but falls short of the NCAA-minimum of 2.5 threes made per game.
With 110 career threes, he ranks 11th all-time at UCI, six behind No. 9 Jerry Green and Mike Hood.
Lauer is third in the Big West in three-point field goals made per game at 2.22. In conference games only, he ranks second in three-point percentage (.552) and in three-pointers made per game (2.85).
He has hit 15 of 22 triples in the last five games, including 7 of 9 in last week's two wins (5 of 5 in Wednesday's win over Cal State Northridge).
Lauer was named the Big West Player of the Week Jan. 5 after scoring a career-high 27 points (7 of 12 threes) in the Jan. 3 win over Cal State Fullerton.
BLAND LEADS BIG WEST IN DOUBLE-DOUBLES: Senior forward Kevin Bland leads the Big West this season with six double-doubles. He is averaging 10.1 points and a team-leading 6.9 rebounds per game (third in the Big West). He scored a career-high 26 points in the Nov. 21 loss to Oregon at the Bren Center.
Bland has recorded nine assists in the last three games and has 54 for the season. In Saturday's win at Hawai'i, he had seven points with three rebounds, three assists and three steals.
Bland was named to the all-tournament team at the Basketball Travelers Tip-Off Tourney in Springfield, Mo., in December after averaging 13.7 points and a tourney-high 10.3 rebounds in three games. His 18 boards in a 64-51 tournament win over Norfolk State Dec. 22 were the most in 25 years by a UCI player since Bob Thornton pulled down 22 in a 93-72 win over Pacific Jan. 21, 1984.
CAREER HIGH FOR DeCASAS: Junior wing Chad DeCasas came off the bench to score a career-high 19 points in Saturday night's win at Hawai'i, hitting 6 of 12 field goals including 3 of 7 threes. He is 18 of 35 from the floor in the last seven games.
`RAMBO' LEADS IN ASSISTS: Sophomore point guard Patrick Rembert leads UCI with 67 assists after recording 22 in the last six games and has averaged 9.0 points in the span.
He averaged 11.5 points in the two wins last week and had six assists in the win over Northridge.
`EATER NOTES
--- UCI ranks first in the Big West Conference for all games in three-point field goal percentage at .398 and in fewest turnovers per game at 11.7 (11.0 in league games). The Anteaters are second in the league in free-throw percentage (.754) and fourth in scoring defense (68.7...
--- UCI entered the week 15th of 330 Division I teams in the latest NCAA rankings in free-throw percentage (.754) and in three-point field goal percentage (.398). The Anteaters are 16th in fewest turnovers per game at 11.7...
--- The Anteaters hit 37 of 44 free throws (.841) and 18 of 34 three-point shots (.529) in the two wins last week...
--- The Anteaters have had 10 games this season of single-digit turnovers...
--- UCI, which is averaging 5.0 steals per game on the season, has averaged 8.3 over the last four contests...
--- UCI head coach Pat Douglass picked up win No. 550 on the four-year collegiate level with UCI's 78-74, overtime victory over Cal State Fullerton Jan. 3. Coach Douglass leads all Big West coaches with 557 career victories on the four-year level...
ABOUT LONG BEACH STATE: Second-year head coach head coach Dan Monson's 49ers are 13-12 overall and tied for first in the Big West with Cal State Northridge at 8-4.
Senior guard Donovan Morris leads LBSU in scoring at 15.6 points per game but has been sidelined recently with a foot injury.
Freshman guard Larry Anderson is averaging 11.1 points, junior guard Stephan Gilling 10.4 and freshman forward T.J. Robinson 10.3 points and 6.2 rebounds.
Anderson had 23 points for the 49ers in their 86-75 BracketBuster loss to Green Bay last Saturday.
In the first meeting of the season between UCI and LBSU, Robinson had 20 points and 10 boards to lead the 49ers to a 67-63 win at the Bren Center Jan. 31. Eric Wise led the `Eaters with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
ABOUT UC RIVERSIDE: Second-year head coach Jim Wooldridge's Highlanders are 15-10 overall and 6-6 in the Big West entering a Thursday night home game with Cal State Fullerton.
Junior forward Kyle Austin, a USC transfer, is averaging 16.6 points and 6.0 rebounds. Senior guard Aaron Scott is averaging 9.6 points and 6.5 boards.
In the season's first meeting, Michael Hunter scored 19 points to lead UCI past UCR, 71-66 in Riverside Jan. 29. Kevin Bland added 17 points and nine rebounds.
Austin led the Highlanders with 21 points.
