MISSOULA, Mont. – UC San Diego built a nine-point halftime advantage, but Southern Miss rallied for a 56-55 win over the Tritons inside the University of Montana's Dahlberg Arena on Thursday night as part of the Zootown Classic.
The Golden Eagles never led by more than one point all night, but that late lead held up. Both teams are now 4-2.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Tritons created open looks early from distance, building a quick 15-6 lead on a barrage of three pointers. UC San Diego hit four of its first eight three-point tries.
Southern Miss cut the lead to just two, but the Tritons built the lead back up to nine.
UC San Diego closed the first half with a 6-0 run – holding the Golden Eagles scoreless over the final 3:49 – to take a 30-21 lead into the locker room. The Tritons never trailed over the first 20 minutes.
Bryce Pope led all first half scorers with 10.
UC San Diego committed just two first half turnovers after committing 17 the night prior in a loss at Montana.
In the second half, Southern Miss began to whittle the Tritons' lead. With 10:47 left in the second half, the Golden Eagles took their first lead of the game, 37-36. But the Southern Miss advantage was short-lived. The Tritons answered with a three from
Francis Nwaokorie to go back on top.
UC San Diego and Southern Miss engaged in a back-and-forth affair for the final 10 minutes of the second half. The Tritons stretched the lead to five at 53-48 on a spinning drive to the basket by
Toni Rocak with 3:42 to play.
Southern Miss used a 6-0 run late to turn a 55-50 deficit into a 56-55 advantage in the final minute of play.
UC San Diego got the ball back with 6.1 seconds to play, but the Tritons couldn't get a shot off before time expired.
Pope led UC San Diego in the scoring column with 15. Rocak and
Jace Roquemore added nine apiece. Rocak led the Tritons with nine rebounds.
Southern Miss held a 43-34 rebound advantage on the night. The Tritons struggled at the free throw line, converting just eight of 15 attempts.
The Golden Eagles are 2-0 in the Zootown Classic and will face host Montana on Friday night.
QUOTABLE
"In close games, it really comes down to making a few more plays and making fewer mistakes," said UC San Diego head coach
Eric Olen. "For us, it's about trying to be more consistent. We're a very capable team but we've got to be more consistent in our performance.
TRITON TIDBITS
- Francis Nwaokorie made his first career start for the Tritons, finishing with nine points and six boards.
- Jake Killingsworth registered a career-high seven assists.
- Thursday was UC San Diego's first neutral site contest since beating Holy Names 98-80 in the NDNU Thanksgiving Classic on Nov. 29, 2019. The Tritons competed in NCAA Division II at that time.
- This was the third meeting between the Tritons and the Golden Eagles. Southern Miss won the two prior meetings in 1975 and 1978.
UP NEXT
UC San Diego was scheduled to face UNCW to wrap up the Zootown Classic, but the game was canceled as the
Seahawks withdrew from the tournament. The Tritons are back inside RIMAC Arena on Thursday, Dec. 2 to host Eastern Michigan at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at
UCSDTritons.com/tickets and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Steve Quis and Ted Mendenhall calling the action.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.
