NORTHRIDGE, Calif. – Bryce Pope scored 20 points and was one of three Tritons in double figures as UC San Diego rolled to a 65-57 victory over host CSUN Thursday night at Premier America Credit Union Arena.  Roddie Anderson III chipped in 14 and Jace Roquemore scored 10 as the Tritons improved to 8-13 overall and 3-6 in The Big West.
 
The Matadors led for just 41 seconds of game action, falling to 4-17 overall and 1-9 in conference action.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
Anderson scored the first nine points of the game for UC San Diego as the Tritons took a quick 9-2 lead three minutes in. Anderson then assisted on a Jace Roquemore dunk as the Tritons went up, 11-2, at the 15:54 mark.
 
CSUN battled back and went up 14-13 but then it was Bryce Pope's turn. He scored nine consecutive points for the visitors as the Tritons went back on top, 24-17.
 
UC San Diego shot 52% over the first 20 minutes, taking a 33-28 lead into halftime. Anderson paced the Tritons with 11 points. Pope added nine and Emmanuel Tshimanga chipped in six. The visitors controlled the glass, outrebounding CSUN 21-12, anmd the Tritons outscored the Matatdors in the paint, 20-2.
 
In the second half, CSUN was able to work the ball inside with some success, scoring 20 points in the paint after halftime. The Tritons turned the ball over 12 times in the second half, but UC San Diego never gave up the lead.
 
The Tritons outrebounded the Matadors, 39-33, in the win. UC San Diego was 11-of-13 (85%) from the free throw line on the night.
 
QUOTABLE

 
TRITON TIDBITS

• UC San Diego has led at halftime in six of its nine Big West games.
• Jake Kosakowski had a career-high four rebounds – all in the first half.
• The Tritons improved to 5-2 this season when outrebounding their opposition. Thursday was the first Big West game in which UC San Diego held an advantage on the glass.
• UC San Diego is now 3-0 all-time against CSUN since moving to Division I and The Big West two years ago.
• The Tritons improved to 3-1 in Thursday games against Big West opponents this season.
• UC San Diego used a starting lineup of Roddie Anderson III, Jace Roquemore, Bryce Pope, Jake Kosakowski, and Francis Nwaokorie for the third consecutive game.

 
UP NEXT
UC San Diego will travel to UC Riverside for a Saturday matinee. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. from SRC Arena and the game will be broadcast live on Spectrum SportsNet.
 
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.