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Men’s Basketball: Aggies subdue ‘Eaters

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Visiting UC Davis left the nation’s top three-point shooter, one of the top scorers in the land, and one of the top guards in the country on the bench Thursday.

But the Aggies brought everything else, including enough determination and skill to overcome the absence of injured senior guard Corey Hawkins and overwhelm UC Irvine, 75-56, in a Big West Conference showdown between two of the league’s three first-place teams coming in.

Hawkins, who ranks No. 6 in the nation in scoring (21.3 per game), and No. 1 in three-point accuracy (52.6%) was not in uniform due to a reported calf injury that UCI Coach Russell Turner said served to somehow deflate the Anteaters.

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“We knew about 20 minutes before the game that he wasn’t playing and obviously it affected our ability to play well, somehow,” Turner said. “I don’t think there’s any way to quantify that, but I think it’s human nature for a team, when a player is out, especially a player as good as Hawkins, to have a human-nature response of some sort of relief. I think that relief takes away the edge necessary to compete at the highest level. And we looked like a team that couldn’t find that edge.”

UC Davis (17-4, 7-1 in conference) found little lacking in a performance that halted UCI’s six-game winning streak, its longest since 2006.

The Aggies, who finished last in the nine-team Big West last season (9-22, 4-12 in conference) and were picked to finish seventh this season, buried the defending Big West regular-season champion and preseason favorite with perimeter prowess, inside strength and dogged defense.

UC Davis, which came in tops among 345 NCAA Division I teams in three-point proficiency (45.4%), made seven of 10 three-point attempts and shot 53.8% from the field.

The Aggies also impeded UCI’s recent offensive flow with hard-nosed defense that Turner said included surprising strength.

“[The Aggies] came in and set the tone with their physicality early,” said Turner, whose team shot 30.4% from the field (17 for 56) and was a mere three for 15 from three-point range. “They are not known as a physical team, but they were that, compared to us tonight.”

UCI (13-9, 6-2) was up, 19-18, with 6:05 left in the first half, before senior John Ryan, trying to protect the ball, was called for a flagrant foul when his elbow connected with a defender’s nose.

Ryan, who had seven points, four blocked shots, three points and an assist to that point, sat the rest of the half with two fouls and the Aggies surged toward intermission on a 17-6 run and never looked back.

UC Davis made seven of its first 10 field-goal attempts in the second half and kept pouring it on, pushing the lead to as many as 25 before exiting with a share of first place, along with Long Beach State.

UCI’s chances were further compromised when junior guard Alex Young injured his left foot midway through the first half and never returned. The ‘Eaters continued to miss 7-foot-6 sophomore Mamadou Ndiaye, who sat out his sixth straight game and 15th of the season with a foot injury.

UCI senior Will Davis made seven of 11 field-goal tries on his way to 18 points and six rebounds, while Ryan finished with seven points, nine boards and half of the ‘Eaters’ 10 blocks.

Young, who played just nine minutes, and fellow starter Travis Souza, who was zero for four from the field, all from threedom, both finished without a point, as the Davis bench outscored UCI’s starters, 36-32.

The Aggies were paced by 6-9 senior forward Josh Ritchart, who was 10 for 11 from the field, including a pair of three-pointers, to produce a game-high 22 points.

Junior reserve Tyler Les, the son of Aggies Coach and former NBA standout Jim Les, had a season-best 18 points. The younger Les was three for three from beyond the arc.

Turner gave full credit to the Aggies, but noted that his team had one of its worst performances of the season.

“We haven’t had so few guys play well in a long time,” said Turner, whose team will visit Long Beach State on Saturday at 4 p.m. “I thought the biggest factor was Davis’ focused intensity and the way they brought it.”

Turner said he did not expect Young nor Ndiaye to play Saturday.

Big West Conference

UC Davis 75, UC Irvine 56

UCD – Adenrele 3, Ritchart 22, Lemar 6, Johnson 5, Graham 3, Les 18, Monson 10, Fox 6, Onyebalu 2.

3-pt. goals – Les 3, Ritchart 2, Graham 1, Johnson 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – Coach Les 1.

UC Irvine – Davis 18, Ryan 7, Nelson 7, Young 0, Souza 0, Dimakopoulos 6, Dunning 5, Wright 4, Saprykinas 4, Martin 3, Best 2.

3-pt. goals – Nelson 2, Martin 1.

Fouled out – None.

Technicals – Ryan 1.

Halftime – 35-25, UCD.

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