LA JOLLA, Calif. – UC San Diego built a big second half lead, but UC Riverside came back to earn a 74-68 win Wednesday night in front of 1,813 at LionTree Arena. Sophomore
Francis Nwaokorie scored a season-high 20 points for the Tritons (6-10 overall, 1-3 Big West).
UC Riverside improved to 11-6 overall and 4-1 in conference action.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Highlanders started the game with an 18-12 lead, but UC San Diego responded with a 14-2 run over a six-minute stretch, taking a 26-20 lead on a three-pointer from
Justin DeGraaf.
That DeGraaf three was one of three the first half for the Tritons, but UC San Diego was hot inside the paint. The Tritons shot 55% in the first half. Nwaokorie and
Roddie Anderson III each scored nine to lead the Tritons as UC San Diego took a 40-27 lead into halftime.
UC San Diego scored 22 points in the paint in the first half.
After halftime, the Tritons took advantage of stout defense and transition buckets to build their lead. UC San Diego got a steal from Anderson and a big dunk from
Jace Roquemore to go up 13 early in the half.
UC San Diego built an 18-point lead at 59-41, but the Highlanders began to whittle the Triton lead thanks to a 13-3 spurt after
Emmanuel Tshimanga fouled out. UC Riverside took the lead on a three-pointer from Jamal Hartwell II with 35 seconds left.
Hartwell II scored a career-high 30 for the Highlanders.
The Tritons were led by Nwaokorie's 20 points and eight rebounds. Anderson added 14 points and six boards, and Pope chipped in 13.
QUOTABLE
TRITON TIDBITS
- UC San Diego fell to 2-4 against the Highlanders as members of The Big West.
- UC San Diego shot a season-best 93% from the free throw line (13-of-14).
- The game was the Tritons' first on a Wednesday since the COVID-affected season of 2020-21 when UC San Diego hosted Saint Katherine's in what was the Tritons' second-ever game as a Division I institution.
- The Highlanders were without Zyon Pullin, who entered the night as the leading scorer in The Big West at 19.6 points per game.
UP NEXT
UC San Diego has a split weekend, traveling to CSU Bakersfield for a Saturday matinee (2 p.m., ESPN+). The Tritons will be back at LionTree Arena on Monday to host UC Davis for a 3 p.m. tip (ESPN+, KSDT Radio).
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 90 percent, the highest rate among public institutions in Divisions I and II.
