After its four-game winning streak ended with a three-point loss at Cal Poly Pomona on Feb. 24, the UCSD men’s basketball team exhibited the resolve and poise that has been part of its team character all season, beating Cal State Dominguez Hills by three points in overtime the next day.
Junior center Justin Sinnott’s post play helped propel the Tritons to their best D-II record in school history. However, a 56-53 loss to Cal Poly Pomona on Feb. 24 ended UCSD’s playoff hopes.
The 56-53 loss to the Broncos ended UCSD’s longest winning streak in eight years and its postseason chances, but the 80-77 victory the next night gave the Tritons a perfect 3-0 overtime record in conference games, 3-1 overall, and guaranteed the team a winning record in California Collegiate Athletic Association play for the first time since joining the conference before the 2000-01 season.
Earlier this season, the Tritons had their largest margin of victory in their CCAA history with a 79-46 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills on Jan. 20. UCSD never trailed in the game. On Feb. 25, the Tritons found out early against Dominguez Hills that things would not be so easy this time around. After junior guard Robby Peters got the offense going with back-to-back three-pointers to give UCSD an early 6-2 advantage, the Toros immediately came back, tying the game after a Shamont Brown jumper and a Durwin Williams dunk.
After that, the two teams rallied for nine lead changes and five more ties throughout the first half, as neither team was able to build an advantage or allow their opponent to have one. Neither team led by more than three points in the half and, after two free throws by sophomore guard Clint Allard, the Tritons went into halftime down one, 29-28, to a team that seemed nothing like the squad they handled with ease just one month earlier.
The second half started much like the first, with a three-pointer from Peters starting things off. The Toros responded with a three-point play from junior center/forward Trevon Bryant and to regain their one-point advantage. Something seemed to click for UCSD at that point, as a free throw by senior guard Odioh Odiye began a nine-point UCSD run.
Unlike the seesaw battle of the first half, the Tritons were able to maintain their lead in the second, building up to a double-digit margin at the eight-minute-20-second mark. With just over six minutes left in the game, UCSD led 63-52 after Peters’ fourth and final three-pointer of the game. Then Dominguez Hills’ Carlos Rivers took over, scoring 11-straight points, nine on back-to-back three-pointers, and leading an amazing 13-2 run that tied the game at 65, with 2:39 remaining.
After free throws from both sides, Toro freshman guard Jonathan Toliver gave Dominguez Hills their first lead since early in the second half, 69-68, after a jumper with 40 seconds remaining. Coming out of a time out, Allard was able to draw a foul and, after missing his first free throw, made his second to send the game into overtime.
In the extra period, Allard seemed determined to atone for not winning the game in regulation. With Allard scoring five of the team’s 11 overtime points and Rivers, unable to continue his heroics, turning the ball over twice in the period, the Tritons held on for the win and completed the season sweep of Dominguez Hills.
Allard led four UCSD players in double digits with 21 points, and also chipped in three rebounds, two assists and one steal. Peters had 14 points, freshman forward Henry Patterson added 13 and freshman guard Shane Poppen had 10. Sophomore guard Andrew Hatch scored eight points while netting team highs with five rebounds and three assists.
The Toros were led by two reserves, with Rivers scoring a game-high 31 points in 29 minutes of action and Williams adding 16 points and a game-high seven rebounds off the bench.
The Feb. 24 matchup with Cal Poly Pomona was another tough contest. Although they took an early lead, the Tritons were again unable to extend it to a comfortable margin and found themselves down by four points midway through the half. That would be the largest lead for either team in the period as UCSD battled back, taking a three-point lead with less than five minutes in the half before a 10-4 run gave the Broncos a 29-26 advantage at the break.
The second half proved to be much more of a defensive struggle, with neither team holding more than a five-point advantage. After an incredible 10 lead changes and five ties, sophomore transfer guard Jason Bull made one of two free throws to give UCSD a 53-52 lead with 1:13 remaining. However, UCSD’s four-game winning streak came to an end after a Dion Cook layup with 33 seconds left on the clock gave the Broncos the lead. Cook rebounded UCSD’s final attempt and put an exclamation point on the win with a dunk in the final second.
Peters led UCSD with 12 points on 4-of-9 shooting from the three-point range while Allard grabbed a team-high seven rebounds and dished out a game-high seven assists. As a team, UCSD won the battle of the boards, 26-23, and committed 14 turnovers to Pomona’s 17. However, the Tritons could not match the Broncos’ 57.5 percent field-goal shooting, converting only 43.4 percent of their field-goal attempts and less than 40 percent of their three-point tries.
UCSD returns home for its final two games of the year, taking on San Francisco State on March 3 and Sonoma State in the March 4 season finale.
