LA JOLLA, Calif. – Fourth-ranked UC San Diego rallied from an 18-point deficit to defeat visiting Stanislaus State, 80-73, in overtime Saturday night at RIMAC Arena. The win was the Tritons' 13th victory in a row – a new program record.
UC San Diego remains atop the California Collegiate Athletic Association with a 15-1 conference record (21-1 overall), while the Warriors fell to 13-8 overall and 9-7 in CCAA play. The victory was career win No. 150 for UC San Diego head coach
Eric Olen, who became the second Tritons head coach to reach that milestone.
Sophomore guard
Tyrell Roberts finished with a game-high 32 – his second game of 30+ points in the last two weeks. He scored 22 points after halftime.
It was an uncharacteristically slow start for the home team. The Warriors built a 29-11 lead with 4:19 to go in the half. UC San Diego got several consecutive stops on the defensive end, leading to some easy transition buckets including a big three from Roberts. The Tritons went on a 7-0 run to cut the deficit to single digits.
At halftime, the Warriors led 34-25. Roberts was UC San Diego's leading first half scorer with 10 points.
The first half was the Tritons' worst half of the season statistically. UC San Diego was 8-30 shooting (27%) and just 3-for-17 (18%) from beyond the three-point arc.
In the second half, Roberts heated up. He scored eight points over the first six-plus minutes of the half, as the Tritons began to trim the deficit. Junior guard
Mikey Howell found classmate
Marek Sullivan whose pretty reverse layup drew UC San Diego within seven, 48-41, with 11:39 left.
Down by two with 27 seconds left, Roberts came away with a steal and he found senior
Christian Oshita who tied the game at 63 with a two-hand slam.
The Warriors had a chance to win it, but their putback attempt was blocked as time expired, sending the game to overtime.
In the extra period, Howell buried a fast break three-pointer to put UC San Diego up early. With 2:20 left in the extra frame, Oshita knocked down a three to give the Tritons a 71-69 lead. UC San Diego finished the game on a 12-4 run to secure its 13th straight win.
Roberts hit six 3-pointers and finished with 32 points to lead all scorers. He also added a personal best six steals. Oshita finished with 16, Sullivan posted a double-double with 13 points and 11 boards, and Everman scored 10 and contributed four blocks.
As a team, it was a tough night shooting for UC San Diego. The Tritons posted season-lows in field goal percentage (41.9%), three-point field goal percentage (28.6%), and free throw percentage (64.3%). However, 30 points in the paint and 23 fast break points aided the home team in its big comeback.
Next up for UC San Diego is a trip to Chico to take on No. 18 Chico State on Thursday night. The top 25 match-up is scheduled to tip at 7:30.
About UC San Diego Athletics
With 30 national team championships, nearly 150 individual titles and the top student-athlete graduation rate among Division II institutions in the United States, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program annually ranks as one of the most successful in the country. The Tritons sponsor 23 intercollegiate sport programs that compete on the NCAA Division I and II levels and, in summer 2020, will transition into full Division I status as a member of the Big West Conference. UC San Diego student-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent. A total of 82 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 37 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. In competition, more than 1,300 UC San Diego student-athletes have earned All-America honors.
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