MEN’S BASKETBALL — With two double-digit victories over the
weekend, the Tritons extended a five-game winning streak that puts them just
one game behind the California Collegiate Athletic Association lead heading
into the final stretch of the regular season.

The Tritons rebounded from an early 10-point deficit on Feb.
8 to defeat Humboldt State
University 84-72. The following
night, UCSD never trailed and notched a decisive 82-61 win against Sonoma
State University.
With the victories, UCSD improves to 14-6 overall and 10-4 in the CCAA.

Junior forward Andrew Hatch proved himself efficient off the bench, scoring 12 points in 23 minutes and going 4-of-4 from the field with one three-pointer in the Tritons’ victory over Sonoma State. (Will Parson/Guardian)

With the game against the Sonoma Seawolves broadcast on CSTV
as part of the NCAA Division II National Broadband Broadcast schedule, the
Tritons took the opportunity to prove themselves in front of a national
audience. While UCSD was able to take an early lead, a nearly four-minute
scoring drought that began with just over 10 minutes to play in the first half
allowed Sonoma State
to tie the game at 18.

Head coach Chris Carlson’s squad responded, scoring 19
points in the final six-and-a-half minutes and outscoring the Seawolves 13-6 in
the final four minutes of the half. Shooting over 60 percent from the field and
connecting on 6-of-8 from long distance, the Tritons led by as much as 11 and
held a 37-28 advantage at the break.

“They kind of played
harder than us in the first half,” junior center A.J. Maulhardt said. “Coach
talked to us at halftime and told us ‘no one plays harder in our house,’ so we
came out in the second half, knocked down some shots and D’ed up.”

Due to a technical foul against Sonoma
State coach Pat Fuscaldo that came
at the end of the first half, UCSD opened the second with sophomore guard
Kelvin Kim hitting one-of-two free throws to extend to a 10-point lead. The
Seawolves climbed no closer than eight points the rest of the way as sophomore
guard Jordan Lawley connected on two early second-half threes and UCSD found
its first 20-point lead with 15:33 left in the game. Despite increased pressure
from Sonoma State,
the Tritons executed on both ends, turning the ball over only 10 times in the
game and converting 31 of their 49 field goal attempts in the game on 22
assists. UCSD would hit 6-of-8 from three-point range, and junior forward Henry
Patterson punctuated the victory with a thunderous dunk at 4:07 left in the game. The 21-point final margin serving
as the Tritons’ biggest win of the year.

After picking up their first-ever CCAA win against Sonoma
State during Spirit Night last season, the Tritons have now won three straight
games over the Seawolves and swept the season series with the former CCAA
champion.

“I remember my first two years here; we had a tough time
with Sonoma State,”
junior forward Shane Poppen said. “We’d have close games, but we couldn’t
finish. To beat them both times this year, that feels really good.”

Four Tritons scored in double digits, led by a career-high
17 points from junior guard Alan Husted, who connected on 5-of-6 three-pointers
and also grabbed three rebounds in only 17 minutes off the bench.

Husted, who also grabbed three boards and added one steal
and one assist, said he has been getting good looks at the basket.

“Luckily I got some open shots against the zone,” Husted
said. “I feel like I’ve been shooting the ball well. Kelvin and Clint
penetrating and getting me open shots, and if I’m that open I feel confident
shooting the ball.”

Fellow reserve junior guard Andrew Hatch added 12 points on
a perfect 4-for-4 field-goal shooting night, while Patterson and Lawley scored
15 and 14 points, respectively. Patterson put together a double-double, adding
10 rebounds, while Kim was just shy with nine points and a game-high 10
assists.

In a battle of the CCAA’s second-place teams, UCSD struggled
early on from the floor against Humboldt
State, scoring only four points in
the first 9:29 of the game. The
Tritons’ swarming defense kept them close, with Humboldt
State coming to just eight points
in that same stretch. The Lumberjacks seemed poised to pull away, however, with
three three-pointers in just over two minutes and a 21-11 advantage with 7:04 to play in the half. Kim and senior guard
Clint Allard drove to the basket for layups on consecutive possessions as the
Tritons cut into the Humboldt State
advantage. Getting as close as two points following an Husted three-pointer,
the Tritons would go into the breakdown four after Husted found Poppen for a
layup with six seconds on the clock.

According to Lawley, the Tritons did not treat Humboldt
State lightly, having surrendered a
45-39 halftime lead and eventually losing to the Lumberjacks in January.

“We came in knowing that Humboldt was a great team,” Lawley
said. “They beat us at their place, so [there was] definitely some vengeance
there.”

UCSD wasted little time in the second half, tying the score
within three-and-a-half minutes following intermission. The Tritons played
patiently and in control, adeptly handling the Lumberjacks’ full-court pressure
and using it to find open looks on the offensive end. After Poppen put back a
missed three-pointer by Allard, an Allard steal and assist led to a
three-pointer from junior forward Darryl Lawlor that gave UCSD its first lead
of the game, 41-40, with 13:17 to play. UCSD would not trail for the remainder
of the game, despite leading by no more than six points over the next 10
minutes. Humboldt State
was unable to mount a comeback, going 1-of-7 from long distance over the final 2:22, as the Tritons converted 12-of-16 from
the line to seal the victory.

The Tritons converted exactly half of their field-goal
attempts, though only 4-of-17 from behind the arc. However, UCSD held a 35-28
rebounding advantage and went 30-for-37 from the charity stripe, compared to Humboldt
State’s 17-for-25. UCSD received a balanced scoring
attack, with five Tritons in double digits. Kim led the way with 14 points,
followed by Lawlor with 13, Allard with 11 and Lawley and Poppen with 10 each.
Poppen also grabbed a game-high 10 rebounds and had two steals in 20 minutes of
work off the bench.

“Now we’re in the thick of things in the CCAA, so everything
is a big game from here on out if we want to be playing meaningful games in
March,” Husted said. “We’ve just got to take it one game at a time and
hopefully, one victory at a time.”

UCSD concludes its regular season home schedule next
weekend, hosting Cal State Los Angeles on Feb. 15 and Cal State Dominguez Hills
on Feb. 16. Both games are slated for 7:30 p.m.
tip-offs, with Saturday night’s game preceded by a brief pregame Senior Night
ceremony.