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Men's Basketball:
UC Irvine Opens Against Cal Poly at Big West Tournament
March 9, 2010 Game #32 UC Irvine (14-17, 6-10) vs. Cal Poly (11-18, 7-9) Big West Conference Tournament First Round Series Record: UCI leads 20-15 Radio: KUCI/88.9 FM (Mark Roberts, 16th season) WE MEET AGAIN: UC Irvine and Cal Poly face each other for the second time in four days Wednesday night in the first round of the Big West Conference Tournament at the Anaheim Convention Center. The No. 7 seed `Eaters had an epic rally Saturday night to defeat the sixth-seeded Mustangs, 91-84, in overtime at San Luis Obispo in the regular-season finale. UCI was down 70-62 with 48 seconds left in regulation before hitting four threes, including two by Darren Moore in the last nine seconds, to send the game into overtime. The `Eaters outscored Cal Poly, 17-10, in the extra session as Patrick Rembert scored seven points and Moore six.
2010 BIG WEST TOURNAMENT Times for second games of each session are approximate. Those games will begin 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first game. Wednesday, March 10 - First Round Thursday, March 11 - Quarterfinals Friday, March 12 - Semifinals - Televised by ESPNU Saturday, March 13 - Championship - Televised by ESPN2 UCI'S TOURNAMENT HISTORY: This year marks the 28th appearance for the Anteaters in the Big West Tournament. UCI, 20-27 all-time in the event, lost to UC Davis, 69-68, in the first round last year. The Anteaters have reached the tournament final three times: 1988 (86-79 loss to Utah State), 1994 (70-64 loss to New Mexico State) and 2008 (81-66 loss to Cal State Fullerton).
UCI IN THE BIG WEST TOURNAMENT (20-27) FIRST ROUND 6-2 QUARTERFINALS 11-12 SEMIFINALS 3-10 FINALS 0-3 COACH DOUGLASS: Pat Douglass, who is in his 13th season as head coach at UC Irvine in 2009-10, is the longest-tenured and winningest coach in the 45-year history of the Anteater program. He has compiled an Anteater record of 197-190 in 12-plus years. Douglass passed previous UCI leader Bill Mulligan (163 wins) in a 74-59 victory over Pacific Feb. 14, 2008. Douglass leads all Big West Conference coaches with 573 victories at the four-year collegiate level. In his 28-plus seasons in the four-year ranks, he is 573-309. Entering the season, Douglass ranked 13th in Division I in victories for active coaches who have spent a minimum of five years at a Division I school as head coach (includes record at all four-year schools). Douglass gained victory No. 500 in his four-year collegiate coaching career when the Anteaters stunned then-No. 13 Stanford, 79-63, at Maples Pavilion Nov. 19, 2005. `EATER NOTES WISE, HUNTER RECEIVE ALL-BIG WEST RECOGNITION: UC Irvine sophomore forward Eric Wise and senior guard Michael Hunter have received All-Big West Conference recognition for the 2009-10 season. For the second straight year, Wise was named to the All-Big West second team and Hunter to the honorable mention squad. Wise leads UCI in scoring (16.4), rebounding (6.4) and assists (3.0). He has 12 20-point games this season and 18 in his career.). Wise ranks fourth in the Big West in scoring (16.4), fifth in assists (3.0) and assist/turnover ratio (1.49), seventh in rebounding (6.4) and ninth in offensive rebounds (2.26). Hunter ranks first in the Big West in free-throw percentage (.878), second in three-point field goals made per game (2.52), sixth in steals (1.35) and 11th in scoring (14.0). He became UCI`s career leader in three-point field goals made during last Saturday night's 91-84, overtime win at Cal Poly, hitting 4 of 10 treys to give him 234 threes in his career. Hunter ranks third in UCI career steals (160), seventh in assists (295) and ninth in scoring (1,300 points). TOURNAMENT EXPERIENCE: Six UCI players have played in a combined total of 17 Big West Tournament games, led by Michael Hunter with eight. UCI is 5-3 in the eight games Hunter has played in. THIS SEASON, UCI IS: ...6-0 when the opponents shoot under 40 percent from the field SUCCESSFUL LINEUP: UCI is 7-3 this season when the starting lineup is Patrick Rembert, Michael Hunter, Darren Moore, Eric Wise and Zack Atkinson. GOOD SHOOTING: In last Saturday's 91-84, overtime win at Cal Poly, UCI hit 10 of 25 threes and 35 of 43 free throws. DOUGLASS, WILLIAMS TIED IN WINS AS BIG WEST COACHES: With 197 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. HUNTER BECOMES CAREER LEADER IN THREES: Senior guard Michael Hunter, who hit four threes in Saturday's win at Cal Poly, now ranks No. 1 in UCI career three-pointers with 234. He is third in steals (159), seventh in assists (295) and ninth in scoring with 1,300 points, 20 behind No. 8 Adam Parada (2000-04). 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 7. 295 Michael Hunter, 2006-present Hunter is tied with Jeff Gloger (2002-05) for seventh in assists. Kevin Davis (1973-77) is sixth with 321. UCI CAREER POINTS 9. 1,300 Michael Hunter, 2006-present EYE OF THE HUNTER: Hunter ranks first in the Big West in free-throw percentage (.878), second in three-point field goals made per game (2.52), sixth in steals (1.35) and 11th in scoring (14.0). Hunter has made 49 of his last 54 foul shots. He has averaged 19.7 points in the last three games. WISE LEADER: Sophomore forward Eric Wise, who is averaging 16.4 points and 6.4 rebounds, has 12 20-point games this season and 18 in his career. He has 49 double-figure scoring performances in 62 career games. In the last five games, Wise has averaged 20.4 points and 8.2 rebounds. Wise is on the verge of becoming just the second player in UCI history (and the first in 37 years) to lead the team in scoring, rebounding and assists. Dave Baker was the first player to accomplish the feat in 1972-73 (15.3 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 2.3 apg). Wise ranks fourth in the Big West in scoring (16.4), fifth in assists (3.0) and assist/turnover ratio (1.49), seventh in rebounding (6.4) and ninth in offensive rebounds (2.26). He recorded his third double-double of the season (and fifth of his career) with 21 points and a career-high 13 rebounds in the Feb. 27 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 accumulated 941 points and 382 rebounds in his young career. He has career averages of 15.2 points and 6.2 rebounds. His 31 points in the 78-68 loss at San Jose State Dec. 28 marked the first 30-point game by an Anteater player in nearly five years. Aaron Fitzgerald scored 30 points in an 80-67 win over Idaho in the Big West Tournament Mar. 9, 2005. His father, Francois Wise, is a former All-American player at Long Beach State and his uncle, Willie Wise, was a standout in the ABA in the 1970s. THE MOORE FACTOR: Junior guard Darren Moore has averaged 15.5 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists in the last eight games. He has hit 16 of 33 threes and 30 of 37 free throws in that span. He scored a career-high 24 points in last Saturday's overtime win at Cal Poly, hitting two threes in the final nine seconds of regulation. 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 fifth in the Big West in free-throw percentage (.768). RAMBO'S CONTROL: Junior guard Patrick Rembert has 54 assists and just 22 turnovers in 16 Big West games. He ranks second in the Big West in assist/turnover ratio (2.45) for league games and is third in assists for conference games at 3.38 per contest, and in free-throw percentage at .825. Rembert, who made the game-winning layup with nine seconds left in the Feb. 13 win over UC Davis, scored a career-high 20 points in last Saturday's overtime win at Cal Poly, hitting 9 of 10 free throws. In the last three games, he has averaged 11.0 points, 5.3 assists and 5.3 rebounds. ZACK IS 3RD IN BIG WEST IN BLOCKED SHOTS: Senior center Zack Atkinson ranks third in the Big West in blocked shots with 35 for a 1.21 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 52.7 percent from the field for the season. CAREER NIGHT FOR KIM: In last Wednesday's 77-74 loss at UC Santa Barbara, Emil Kim posted career highs of seven points, three assists and three steals. He tied his career high with three rebounds in Saturday's win at Cal Poly. ABOUT CAL POLY: First-year head coach Joe Callero's Mustangs are 11-18 overall and were 7-9 in Big West play. Senior guard Lorenzo Keeler leads Cal Poly in scoring at 16.0 points per game. Junior guard Shawn Lewis is averaging 12.0 points while sophomore forward David Hanson is averaging 10.4 points and 5.3 rebounds. UCI IN THE NCAA STATS: As of Monday, UCI ranks 34th nationally (of 334 teams) in fewest turnovers per game at 11.6. Wisconsin is ranked first at 9.0. The `Eaters are 48th in free-throw percentage (.727) and 55th in assist/turnover ratio (1.13). Michael Hunter is 22nd nationally in free-throw percentage at .878. Donald Sims of Appalachian State is first at .952. UCI IN THE BIG WEST STATS: UCI ranks first in the Big West Conference in free-throw percentage (.727) and turnover margin (+1.94). The `Eaters are second in assist/turnover ratio (1.13).
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