Faulkner: UCI storms into tourney
A big part of the college experience is doing things you have never done before.
The UC Irvine men’s basketball team capturing the school’s first Big West Conference Tournament championship Saturday, and with it the program’s inaugural berth into the NCAA Tournament, was a classic case in point.
Players, coaches, support staff, students, alumni, family, friends and fans all cavorted on the Honda Center hardwood following the Anteaters’ 67-58 triumph over Hawaii. It was an explosion of emotion 50 years in the making, and it will never again be so purely, wonderfully novel. Call it déjà new.
“It’s incredibly satisfying to accomplish this goal,” said UCI Coach Russell Turner, who predicted as much when hired before the first of his five seasons in 2010. “I don’t how to describe how happy I am for our players, who came here with the idea that we were going to be the team to do it and leave a mark on this community. We did what we said we were going to do.
“I think that there are an awful lot of people who share in this, especially the players who have come before. Not just the ones who I’ve coached, but especially those guys. Two years ago we were not able to finish it [losing in the Big West Tournament final, then winning the conference regular-season title last season, but losing in the Big West tournament semifinals], and many of our players this year had experienced that. There’s no question that helped us.
“It wasn’t easy and I think that’s what people have to understand,” said Turner, who was an assistant coach on NCAA Tournament teams at Stanford and Wake Forest. “You have to build a program. It takes time. It’s hard. I’ve seen incredible growth in our players, to be able to achieve this. Having continuity in our [coaching] staff has been important for us. I don’t feel like this is a lucky thing. I feel like this is something we’ve been working toward, and now have been able to accomplish. Winning this, hopefully, will allow us to set greater goals.”
—
•The next goal may be the most difficult, as the No. 13-seeded Anteaters (21-12) face No. 4-seeded Louisville (24-8), guided by Hall-of-Fame Coach Rick Pitino, in a second-round game of the East Regional. Tipoff at KeyArena in Seattle is approximately 1:10 p.m.
The history is as daunting as the matchup, as Louisville is making its 41st NCAA Tournament appearance (which ranks No. 5 in the nation) and its ninth consecutive Big Dance. The Cardinals, who won national championships in 2013, 1986 and 1980, have been to the Final Four seven times, the elite eight 13 times and the sweet 16 on 20 occasions. They are 72-41 all-time in the NCAA Tournament to rank No. 6 in tournament wins.
Friday’s winner will advance to Sunday’s third round against either No. 5-seeded Northern Iowa or No. 12-seeded Wyoming.
—
•UCI senior Will Davis continues to build on a legacy worthy of placement in the program’s pantheon. The Big West Tournament MVP and a first-team all-conference honoree became the first player to produce three double-doubles in the conference tournament. And with 10 rebounds Saturday, he moved past Tod Murphy into second on the school’s career rebound list with 843. Only Dave Baker (1971-75) has more with 926.
Davis, who averaged 15 points and 11.6 rebounds and shot 67% from the field in the Big West Tournament, leads UCI in scoring (12.9 per game), rebounding (seven per contest) and total blocked shots (34). His .541 field-goal percentage this season tops all Big West players.
Davis’ 1,370 career points rank No. 8 in UCI annals, 105 behind the legendary Kevin Magee.
—
•Davis, who is 6-foot-8, and sophomore teammate Mamadou Ndiaye, the tallest player in the nation at 7-6, have fond memories of Seattle, where the ‘Eaters defeated host Washington, 86-72, in nonconference play last season.
Davis had 22 points and was 10 for 12 from the field against the Huskies. He added seven rebound and two blocks.
Ndiaye (10.4 ppg this season, though he has missed 19 games with foot injuries), had 18 points and what was then a school-record nine blocked shots against Washington. Ndiaye, who had a UCI-record 106 blocked shots last season, later upped the single-game record to 11.
—
•Davis and Ndiaye, both former Big West Defensive Players of the Year, are likely to be bolstered by the return of 6-10 senior John Ryan, who is on track to return after missing nine games with an injured tendon in his foot. Ryan started 19 games this season and is averaging 5.5 points and five rebounds. Ryan’s 33 blocks rank second on the team.
“It looks to me like he is going to play,” Turner said of Ryan, one of the team’s captains. “He practiced full-out [Tuesday], so I’m excited for that.”
—
•Turner also has some history with Louisville in the NCAA Tournament. As an assistant at Wake Forest, Turner helped the Demon Deacons top the Cardinals, then coached by Denny Crum, in the Sweet 16 in 1996. The win propelled Wake into the Elite Eight. It was the furthest Turner, whose squad was led by Tim Duncan that season, has ever gone into the NCAA Tournament.
Turner said he had coached in three NCAA Tournaments at Wake Forest, and four as a Stanford assistant. He said he competed in two NCAA Division III tournaments as a standout player at Hampden-Sydney and another as a coach at the Virginia-based school.
—
•Mike Wilder, who had a solid four-year playing career at UCI that ended two seasons ago, is the director of administration for the program this season and sits on the bench with the coaching staff during each game.
One of the most popular-student athletes in UCI history, Wilder said last week’s monumental title run was something to behold.
“It’s a great week to be an ‘Eater,” said UCI basketball’s head alumnus in charge. “I’m real excited for these [players], especially having played with nine of them. I also established relationships with sophomores [Ndiaye and Nelson], who were coming in as I was going out. It’s exciting – the vibe around campus, the community, and with family and friends. It’s just amazing to see and these guys deserve it more than anyone else. I’m proud of them.
“I’m just blessed to be back here, to be on staff in the capacity that I’m in. I get to be a part of something I poured my heart and soul into for four years. I know I speak for all alumni when I say this is just a proud moment. It has been a long time coming and I’m just glad we were able to do it.”
—
•A thought on the Big West Tournament title from UCI Athletic Director Mike Izzi, who hired Turner following the departure of Pat Douglass.
“It’s great for the young guys on the team, great for the program and great for the institution,” Izzi said on the court after Saturday’s win. “We are very excited and I am happy that all of our fans and alums got to experience this moment tonight. It’s fabulous.”
—
•Finally Turner, who has been instrumental in helping to generate unprecedented student support for basketball, said the postgame display on Saturday was rewarding.
“The reaction when we won was really cool,” Turner said. “I’m happy for that. Hey, I’ve been part of three college communities, now four, that have benefited incredibly from the success of their college basketball teams [Hampden-Sydney, Wake Forest, Stanford and UCI]. As much as anything, that’s why you have a college basketball team; to have pride in the university and to try to build some momentum around that. I think I have that perspective and I think I understand, so to see us accomplish that is gratifying. That’s what I came here to do.”