LA JOLLA, Calif. – One game after scoring 94 points, it was a different type of night for UC San Diego. On Tuesday, it was the Triton defense that propelled UC San Diego to a 64-54 win over Sacramento State at LionTree Arena. The Tritons forced 18 turnovers by the visitors.
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones scored a game-high 21 points and grabbed eight rebounds as the Tritons improved to 2-0 at home.
Tyler McGhie poured in 17 in the win for UC San Diego (2-1).
The loss was the second straight for Sacramento State, as the Hornets fell to 1-2 on the young season. Alex Kovatchev led the visitors in the scoring column with 14.
HOW IT HAPPENED
A
Nordin Kapic layup midway through the first half extended an early 10-2 UC San Diego run, giving the Tritons a 19-9 lead. The Hornets responded with eight straight over the next two minutes to draw within a bucket at 19-17.
The Tritons extended the lead back thanks in part to a tremendous flush from
Justin Rochelin off a pretty feed from
Hayden Gray.
UC San Diego led 35-24 at the break, closing the half on an 8-0 run. Tait-Jones led all scorers with 12 points. The Tritons were tough on the defensive end, forcing 13 first half Hornet turnovers.
In the second half, the Tritons went up 14, 45-31, on a bucket from McGhie with 15:59 left. Sacramento State drew to within seven, 54-47, with just under eight minutes to play. The Tritons were able to build the lead back up to 15 before the Hornets closed the game on a 5-0 run to cut their final deficit to 10.
QUOTABLE
TRITON TIDBITS
- The 54 points for the Hornets were a season-low by a UC San Diego opponent.
- The Tritons dished out 17 assists on 19 made field goals.
- With the win, UC San Diego now leads the all-time series, 3-2, Sacramento State. In Division I, the Tritons now hold a 3-1 edge and Tuesday marked the first Division I win by the home team.
- Chris Howell finished with a career-high six assists and only one turnover before fouling out Tuesday night.
- For the third consecutive game, UC San Diego used a starting lineup of Hayden Gray, Tyler McGhie, Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, Chris Howell, and Nordin Kapic.
UP NEXT
UC San Diego wraps up its three-game home stand on Saturday at 7 p.m. when the Tritons host Seattle U. Tickets can be purchased through Triton Box Office. The game can be seen on ESPN+ with Steve Quis and John Kentera calling the action. Live stats will be available 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 84 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.
