8:51 p.m. UCI wins it at LionTree Arena. Dixon scored the only basket in the final three minutes of play, and that was enough to separate the two rivals. Graduate student guard Emanuel Prospere II was unable to convert on the Tritons’ final possession as they fell 61-59.

8:48 p.m. Beath airballs the triple, and the Tritons are forced to foul down two with nine seconds left. UCI misses the free throw, and the Tritons are given one last chance. UCI up by two, five seconds left.

8:45 p.m. Dixon drives and scores to give UCI a 61-59 lead. The Tritons call a timeout with 14 seconds remaining.

8:43 p.m. A few scoreless minutes leaves us still tied. The Tritons have possession of the ball with 55 seconds left.

8:33 p.m. We are tied once again. Beath drains two free throws at the line to tie it at 57 with four minutes left.

8:31 p.m. Redshirt junior forward Leo Beath is finally hitting his stride. Beath swished back-to-back shots, including a turnaround jumper from the key to cut the lead to two. UCI leads 57-55 with five minutes remaining.

8:26 p.m. In his first game against the Anteaters, Mayes has stepped up, cutting to the rim and fighting for rebounds. Mayes has also scored a pair of threes, including a crucial three to cut the lead down to two. The lead has since widened to six, with seven minutes remaining.

8:06 p.m. UCSD is finally able to get shots falling from beyond the arc. The Tritons are 3 for 3 from deep in the second half and will look to keep that momentum going. UCI leads 41-38 with 16 minutes left.

8:02 p.m. UCI got off to a good start in the second half, launching into a 7-0 run following Chaikin’s three. UCSD head coach Clint Allard is understandably frustrated and calls a timeout. UCI leads 37-31 with 18 minutes left.

7:58 p.m. The Tritons and Anteaters are back on the court for the second half. Chaikin makes his first three of the game, finally freeing himself from the UCI defense’s grasp.

7:55 p.m. It’s still early in the season, but this match could play a pivotal role in deciding who will be the Big West regular season champion. UCI and Hawai’i are currently tied for first in the standings, but the Tritons and UC Santa Barbara are only one game behind. A Triton win here and a Rainbow Warrior loss in the upcoming Hawai’i-Cal State Northridge game would see a four-way tie for first between UCSD, UCI, UCSB, and Hawai’i.

7:43 p.m. We are deadlocked at 28 going into halftime, and this rivalry game is living up to the hype. Love them or hate them, the intense Anteater defense is the perfect foil for the unique Triton offense. We have one half left to go at LionTree Arena.

7:34 p.m. UCI isn’t bothering to guard any Triton from beyond the arc other than sophomore guard Alex Chaikin. It paid off, as less effective Triton shooters have continued to miss wide-open threes. The Anteaters lead 24-23 with three minutes left in the half.

7:26 p.m. It looks like this could be a repeat of last season’s January matchup between these two teams. UCI head coach Russell Turner has employed a very similar defensive strategy to last year: guard the paint and limit UCSD’s best 3-point shooter. So far, it has been effective, as UCI leads 21-18.

7:17 p.m. It’s raining in La Jolla. Freshman guard Hudson Mayes joins in on the 3-point barrage; the Tritons have now sunk four of their first eight 3-point attempts. UCSD leads 16-10 with 12 minutes left in the opening half.

7:12 p.m. The Tritons are off to a good start, leading 13-8 after seven minutes. The defense is an early bright spot for the Tritons who have snatched three early steals.

7:03 p.m. Anteater sophomore forward Jurian Dixon gets the scoring started, and UCI leads 2-0.

7:00 p.m. UCSD men’s basketball (15-5, 5-3 Big West) faces UC Irvine (13-7, 6-2 Big West) at LionTree Arena — the second game of tonight’s live updates doubleheader. In the heated rivals’ first meeting since the 2025 Big West Championship, both teams desperately need a win to remain in the regular season title race. Stay tuned for The UCSD Guardian’s live coverage.

3:54 p.m. The Tritons win! UCI gets the perfect shot on its final play, but is unable to convert as time expires on the game and on its 16-game win streak.

3:51 p.m. UCI quickly makes a layup, and the Tritons turn it over on the inbound. UCI now has the ball, currently down by two with 13 seconds left.

3:48 p.m. Smith will go to the line after another Anteater foul. Smith makes both at the line. Tritons are up four with 23 seconds left.

3:45 p.m. Another turnover! The Anteaters lose it out of bounds, and the Tritons get possession with 30 seconds left. UCI fouls Smith.

3:44 p.m. Turnovers are starting to mount in Irvine. Rose steals it from an Anteater and Condron hits 1 of 2 free throws on the ensuing possession. UCI gets possession again, but Smith is there and pickpockets an Anteater. The Tritons throw it away on the next possession. With 37 seconds left, the Tritons are up two.

3:40 p.m. Condron turns it over, and UCI capitalizes with a big three. UCI down one, two minutes left.

3:36 p.m. It’s coming down to the wire in Irvine as both teams battle for a crucial win. If UCSD holds on, it will be its first Quad 2 win of the season and will move it to the top of the Big West standings, tied with the Anteaters. The Tritons lead 65-58 as we enter the final four minutes of play.

3:20 p.m. A controversial travel call to end the quarter has the UCI bench and the Bren Events Center in an uproar. The Tritons get the ball and Ma drills a triple as time expires on the third. UCSD leads 50-43 as we enter the final quarter.

3:11 p.m. UCI has managed to tie the game twice in the third — both courtesy of buckets from Anteater senior guard Hunter Hernandez, who leads UCI in scoring with 11 points. However, a putback from Triton senior guard Sabrina Ma that had the UCSD bench on its feet could swing the momentum in the Tritons’ favor. Tritons lead 40-38 with five minutes left in the third.

2:50 p.m. At halftime, the Tritons lead 32-29 and are now only one half away from pulling off a monumental upset against UCI.

2:35 p.m. Things are starting to look rosy for the Tritons; senior guard Makayla Rose and redshirt junior guard Rosa Smith hit back-to-back triples to give UCSD a 28-22 lead. The Tritons are now in the midst of a 13-0 run, having held UCI scoreless for six minutes. The Tritons’ defense has fueled the streak, forcing turnovers and aggressively defending the paint.

2:23 p.m. It was a dominant first quarter for Condron. As the Tritons struggled to shoot from deep, they turned to Condron, who muscled through defenders in the paint en route to nine first-quarter points. However, UCI was able to create a bit of separation, now leading by five after one period.

2:13 p.m. It’s been close the first few minutes as the Anteaters and Tritons remain on each other’s heels. UCI up 10-8 with five minutes left in the first quarter.

2:04 p.m. Junior center Erin Condron gets the Tritons on the board as the game gets underway. UCSD leads 2-0.