LA JOLLA, Calif. – UC San Diego (5-4) was back to its winning ways Tuesday night with a 98-67 victory over Occidental. This is the team's first win in four games, two of which were separated by one possession.
 
Aidan Burke's late-game composure from the perimeter placed him atop the Triton's scoring chart with 15 points, closely followed by Justin DeGraaf and Bryce Pope, who each recorded 13 points.
 
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones led on defense, racking up eight rebounds while also contributing nine points. Pope, Camden McCormick, and J'Raan Brooks each snatched seven rebounds.
           
HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Tuesday's game started modestly for both sides, who struggled to find the basket. Despite a Pope three-pointer to open the Triton's scoring, UC San Diego did not score until almost four minutes later when Francis Nwaokorie hit a three of his own.
 
It would only be a matter of time, however, until the Pope show began. The team's leading scorer, at 18.5 points per game, found his footing with a pair of threes and a tight bucket in the paint to give the Tritons a healthy 15-8 advantage midway through the first half. UC San Diego did not give up the lead after this spree of points.
 
A substitution overhaul soon after proved auspicious for the hosts. DeGraaf made an immediate impact, recording a three, defensive rebound, and layup in the first few sequences following the change. UC San Diego's reinforcements scored 20 points in five minutes to extend the lead to as much.
 
A Hayden Gray buzzer-beater closed out a tumultuous first half at 50-23 in favor of the Tritons.
 
Defense was at the forefront of the Triton's first-half effort. UC San Diego kept Occidental to a 32% field goal percentage and allowed just two of the Tigers' 14 threes into the net.
 
The Tritons also rebounded well, scooping 20 defensive rebounds to the Tigers' nine, while collecting another seven on offense. Tait-Jones led the charge, collecting seven of his eight rebounds in the first half.
 
UC San Diego's defense did not let up in the second half. The Tritons quelled Tiger guard Jacob Koretz, who led the team's scoring with 16.9 points per game coming into Tuesday's contest; UC San Diego held Koretz to 11 points and 4-19 shooting from open play.
 
Gray heated up in the second, shooting perfectly from the field and the free-throw line to collect seven more points. McCormick followed suit, dropping 10 points on perfect shooting from the perimeter, paint, and line.
 
Burke joined in as the game came to a close, hitting a trio of three-pointers on consecutive possessions. A final three-pointer stamped the Triton's 98-67 victory.
 
UC San Diego finished with a 49% field goal percentage and 88% free throw percentage; 55 of the Triton's points came from bench players, a rarity for the Tritons. The Tritons secured 13 offensive rebounds that resulted in 22 second-chance points. Defensively, UC San Diego held Occidental to a 40% field goal percentage and recorded four blocks to the Tigers' zero.
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• The Tritons now hold an 18-9 record over the Tigers.
• UC San Diego's last outing against Occidental last December resulted in a 91-55 win for the Tritons.
• Both Aidan Burke's 15 points and Justin DeGraaf's 13 points are career-highs for the two subs.
• This game is marked as an exhibition for the Division III Tigers, who remain 7-0.
• The Tritons wore their white uniforms on Tuesday.

QUOTABLE
 

UP NEXT
UC San Diego takes a trip north to Pepperdine on Saturday at 6 p.m. This will be the first contest between the Tritons and Waves. The game will air live on ESPN+ with 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 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 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.