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Men's Basketball:
UC Irvine Travels to UCSB, Cal Poly
March 2, 2010 Game #30 UC Irvine (13-16, 5-9) vs. UCSB (17-9, 11-4) Wednesday, March 3, 2010 - 7:00 p.m. Series Record: UCSB leads 43-29 Radio: KUCI/88.9 FM (Mark Roberts, 16th season) Game #31 UC Irvine vs. Cal Poly (11-17, 7-8) Saturday, March 6, 2010 - 7:00 p.m. Series Record: UCI leads 19-15 Radio: KUCI/88.9 FM (Mark Roberts, 16th season) CENTRAL COAST SWING TO END REGULAR SEASON: It has come down to the final week of the regular season, and possibly the final day, to determine if UC Irvine will advance to the Big West Tournament. The `Eaters, coming off a 79-74 win over Cal State Northridge Saturday, enter the week 5-9 in conference play, tied in the win column with Northridge (5-9) and UC Riverside (5-10). UCI is tied with Northridge for seventh place in the Big West with each having two games this week. Riverside is ninth but has just one game remaining. The `Eaters swept Northridge in the regular season and lost both games to Riverside. UCI faces league-leading UC Santa Barbara Wednesday night in the Thunderdome before ending the regular season at Cal Poly Saturday evening. Northridge hosts UC Davis Thursday and Pacific Saturday while Riverside travels to Long Beach State Friday. `EATER NOTES DOUGLASS, WILLIAMS TIED IN WINS AS BIG WEST COACHES: With 196 career victories each, UCI's Pat Douglass and UCSB's Bob Williams are tied for fifth in victories as a coach at a Big West school.
THIS SEASON, UCI IS: 5-0 when the opponents shoot under 40 percent from the field....10-3 when leading at halftime....9-3 when scoring at least 70 points....7-3 when outrebounding its opponent....8-4 when shooting at least 20 free throws. SUCCESSFUL LINEUP: UCI is 6-2 this season when the starting lineup is Patrick Rembert, Michael Hunter, Darren Moore, Eric Wise and Zack Atkinson. THE MOORE FACTOR: Junior guard Darren Moore has averaged 15.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists in the last six games. He has hit 12 of 25 threes and 21 of 26 free throws in that span. He scored 17 points in Saturday's win over Northridge, hitting 5 of 7 field goals including 3 of 4 threes. Moore posted a double-double with 13 points and a career-high 12 rebounds in the 66-65 win over Marist Feb. 20. He scored a career-high 21 points and made a career-high four three-pointers in the 69-67 victory over UC Davis Feb. 13. He ranks sixth in the Big West in free-throw percentage (.762) and is ninth in steals (1.10 per game). RAMBO'S CONTROL: Junior guard Patrick Rembert has 44 assists and just 19 turnovers in 14 Big West games. He ranks second in the Big West in assist/turnover ratio (2.32) for league games and is tied with teammate Eric Wise for fifth in assists for conference games at 3.13 per contest. Rembert, who made the game-winning layup with nine seconds left in the Feb. 13 win over UC Davis, had six assists in Saturday's win over Northridge and he tied his career high with eight rebounds in the Feb. 20 victory over Marist. ZACK IS 3RD IN BIG WEST IN BLOCKED SHOTS: Senior center Zack Atkinson ranks third in the Big West in blocked shots with 33 for a 1.22 average. He has recorded at least three blocks in five games this season. Atkinson had 13 points and six rebounds in the Feb. 20 win over Marist. He is shooting 54.1 percent from the field for the season. HUNTER IN 4 CAREER TOP 10 LISTS: Senior guard Michael Hunter, who scored 22 points in Saturday's win over Northridge, now ranks in the top 10 of four UC Irvine career categories. He is second in three-point field goals (226), third in steals (158), eighth in assists (291) and 10th in scoring with 1,263 points, 21 behind No. 9 Jeff Von Lutzow (1989-93). TALENTED 5'S: Hunter and Jerry Green (1998-2002) are the only UCI players to rank in the top 10 of each of those four categories. Green wore jersey number 5, as does Hunter. UCI CAREER 3-POINT FIELD GOALS UCI CAREER STEALS UCI CAREER ASSISTS 291 Michael Hunter, 2006-present Jeff Gloger ranks seventh at UCI with 295 career assists. EYE OF THE HUNTER: Hunter ranks first in the Big West in free-throw percentage (.886), second in three-point field goals made per game (2.41), seventh in steals (1.38) and 11th in scoring (13.7). Hunter has made 40 of his last 43 foul shots. WISE SEEING DOUBLE: Sophomore forward Eric Wise, who is averaging 16.1 points and 6.3 rebounds this season, recorded his third double-double of the season (and fifth of his career) with 21 points and a career-high 13 rebounds in Saturday's win over Northridge. It was his second straight double-double after posting 20 points and 10 boards in the Feb. 20 win over Marist. Wise has 11 20-point games this season and 17 in his career. He has 47 double-figure scoring performances in 60 career games. Wise has accumulated 902 points and 369 rebounds in his young career. He has career averages of 15.0 points and 6.2 rebounds. He ranks fifth in the Big West in scoring (16.1), assists (3.10) and assist/turnover ratio (1.50), seventh in rebounding (6.3) and 10th in field-goal percentage (.446). ABOUT UCSB: Twelfth-year head coach Bob Williams' Gauchos are 17-9 overall and atop the Big West with an 11-4 mark. UCSB had a six-game winning streak snapped in a 60-57 loss at Cal Poly last Saturday. Sophomore guard Orlando Johnson, a transfer from Loyola Marymount, leads the Gauchos in scoring at 17.9 points per game. Sophomore forward James Nunnally is averaging 14.5 points and 5.6 rebounds. UCI defeated UCSB, 57-55, in the Bren Center Jan. 2 as Eric Wise scored 21 points and Michael Hunter 16. Johnson had 19 for the Gauchos. ABOUT CAL POLY: First-year head coach Joe Callero's Mustangs are 11-17 overall and 7-8 in the Big West entering Saturday's game with UCI. Senior guard Lorenzo Keeler leads Cal Poly in scoring at 15.8 points per game. Junior guard Shawn Lewis is averaging 11.5 points and sophomore forward David Hanson 10.4 points and 5.2 boards. Keeler scored 38 points as the Mustangs stunned UCI, 95-81, at the Bren Center Jan. 4. Kyle Odister added 23 points for Cal Poly, which shot 60 percent from the floor. Wise led UCI with 25 points and Hunter added 14. IN THE NCAA STATS: As of Monday, UC Irvine ranks 42nd (of 334 teams) in NCAA Division I in fewest turnovers per game at 11.9. Houston and Wisconsin are tied for first with averages of 9.2 per contest. The `Eaters are 62nd in free-throw percentage (.722) and 66th in turnover margin (1.9). Michael Hunter is 79th in three-point field goals made per game (2.4). IN THE BIG WEST RANKINGS: UCI leads the Big West Conference in free-throw percentage at .722 and turnover margin (+1.86). The `Eaters are second in assist-turnover ratio at 1.09. |
