YPSILANTI, Mich. – UC San Diego guard
Bryce Pope scored 20 points and center
Emmanuel Tshimanga pulled down a career-high 13 rebounds as the visiting Tritons earned a 66-63 victory over host Eastern Michigan inside the George Gervin GameAbove Center on Sunday afternoon.
UC San Diego (3-4) won its second straight road game while the Eagles fell to 1-6.
HOW IT HAPPENED
J'Raan Brooks helped the Tritons get off to a strong start. Brooks sank a three-pointer, free throw, and bucket in the paint early. Eastern Michigan drained two three-pointers and led 10-8 at the game's first media timeout.
Jake Kosakowski drained a three as the Tritons went on a 7-0 run to go up 15-10.
UC San Diego was dominant early, grabbing 13 rebound in the game's first nine minutes – including six from Tshimanga off the bench. The Tritons continued to work the ball inside, building a 30-20 lead with 4:12 on the clock.
The visitors led 34-27 at halftime, outscoring Eastern Michigan 20-6 in the paint over the first 20 minutes and holding a commanding 26-12 rebounding edge. Brooks and
Bryce Pope each scored eight to lead UC San Diego, with Tshimanga adding 11 rebounds. Eastern Michigan's Emoni Bates led all scorers with nine on 3-of-8 shooting.
The Tritons picked up where they left off at halftime, scoring the first five points of the second half on a Brooks layup and Pope three-ball. UC San Diego built its largest lead at 39-27. The Eagles drew to within one at 61-60 with just over two minutes to play.
With his team trailing 63-62 and fewer than 30 seconds to play, NBA prospect Bates got a good look at a corner three to put the Eagles on top, but the shot rimmed out and
Francis Nwaokorie got the rebound.
Roddie Anderson III sank a pair of free throws with 4.6 seconds left to put the Tritons up 65-62. With his team up three,
Jace Roquemore fouled to force EMU into two free throws. The Eagles converted one but were forced to foul
Jake Kosakowski. He connected on a free throw to put the game away.
Pope's 20 and Tshimanga's 13 rebounds were both game highs. Bates led EMU with 17 points and 13 boards.
QUOTABLE
TRITON TIDBITS
- 45 rebounds marked a season high for the Tritons and the most they've corralled against a Division I opponent.
- The Tritons held a 38 to 20 advantage in points in the paint.
- Sunday's game was the program's first-ever in the state of Michigan. Michigan native Justin DeGraaf had more than 40 friends and family members in attendance.
- Sunday marked UC San Diego's first day game of the season and the 2 p.m. EST tip-off will be the Tritons' earliest of the season.
- UC San Diego improved to 2-0 all-time vs. Eastern Michigan with Sunday's victory.
UP NEXT
UC San Diego takes on crosstown foe San Diego for the first time as Division I opponent on Thursday, Dec. 1 when the Tritons visit the Toreros. The game is scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip from USD's Jenny Craig Pavilion with links to live video and live stats on UCSDTritons.com.
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 began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West 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 earned 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.
