Jan. 19, 2008

Box Score

Stockton, Calif. - A balanced offensive attack and strong defense lifted the Pacific men's basketball team to a 59-53 victory over UC Irvine on Saturday, Jan. 19.

The victory lifted Pacific to 13-5 on the season and 4-1 in the Big West Conference, while UC Irvine fell to 7-11 overall and 2-3 in conference play.

UC Irvine took an early six point lead (11-5) with 13:15 remaining in the first half behind three three-pointers from Michael Hunter. The Tigers came back with a 13-1 run over the next five minutes, with four points from Junior Anthony Brown (Sacramento, Calif.) to take an 18-12 run. Pacific took the lead to 24-17 with 5:49 left in the first period after a jumper by Chad Troyer (Seattle, Wash.), but then missed all eight shots and were outscored 5-0 by the Anteaters the rest of the half. The Tigers held a 24-22 halftime lead.

The scoreless stretch extended into the second half as the Anteaters were able to tie the score on a pair of free throws from Darren Fells. The Tigers used a quick 5-0 run over the next minute to lead 29-24, but the Anteaters clawed back to take a 36-33 lead with 11:50 remaining in the game after a 12-4 run. The Tigers trailed 40-39, then outscored UC Irvine 9-0 behind five points from junior Steffan Johnson (Kent, Wash.) to take a 48-40 lead with 6:24 left in the game. Pacific extended the lead to 10 (54-44) with 4:02 left, before the Anteaters outscored the Tigers 9-2 over the next three minutes behind two three-pointers from Patrick Sanders and another trey from Hunter. The Tigers then hit 3-of-4 free throws over the final minute as the Anteaters missed their final two shots and turned the ball over as the Tigers earned the victory.

Brown led the Tigers with 12 points and eight rebounds. Johnson added 10 points, seven in the second half. Freshman Terrell Smith (Federal Way, Wash.) scored a career-high six points off the bench for the Tigers, who out-scored UC Irvine 29-6 in bench scoring. Pacific shot 44.2% from the field for the game, including 58.8% in the second half.

Hunter and Sanders each scored 15 points for the Anteaters.

Pacific returns to the court on Thursday, Jan. 24 as the Tigers travel to Santa Barbara, Calif. to face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos at 7 p.m.