LA JOLLA, Calif. – UC San Diego (15-7, 9-1 Big West) extended its winning streak to four Thursday with an 83-62 win over CSUN (13-9, 4-6 BW) inside LionTree Arena. UC San Diego remains tied with UC Irvine for the top spot in the Big West.
Tyler McGhie led the Tritons with 24 points, closely followed by Bryce Pope's 22 points. Hayden Gray, Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones, and J'Raan Brooks were each credited with four assists in the win.
Tait-Jones and Gray also controlled the game on defense, nabbing three steals each; Gray led UC San Diego with seven rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Tritons momentarily started on the back foot before a steal-and-score from Hayden Gray produced their first lead of the game at 7-6. Steals played a role early for UC San Diego, which collected two more before the five-minute mark.
Tyler McGhie emerged as a star off the bench, leading the first half scoring with 13 points. McGhie highlighted a 12-0 run, kickstarted by a Tait-Jones jumper, with a pair of layups and a three-pointer.
McGhie and the rest of the Tritons were under constant pressure from a physical Matador defense. Forced to shoot from the perimeter, UC San Diego shot 22 three-pointers to CSUN's 3 during the first half. It was the opposite case for the Matadors, who scored all but three of their first-half points in the paint.
The Tritons defense quelled a fast-paced Matador offense, who were prevented from scoring a point over a seven-minute period thanks to disciplined rebounding; CSUN collected three offensive rebounds in the first half and scored no second-chance points. Emmanuel Tshimanga led with five rebounds, as well as one block.
McGhie drew on a little bit more magic to end the half as he hit a buzzer-beating three to give the Tritons a 37-23 advantage going into halftime.
Bryce Pope broke out in the second half following a modest first-half showing. The redshirt senior netted UC San Diego's first 11 points with a trio of three-pointers and a layup; Pope claimed 21 of his 22 points after halftime.
CSUN advanced its defensive press in the second half, challenging for the ball off UC San Diego rebounds. The pressure was dealt with effectively as the Tritons kept their shots pinpoint, at one point going 8-for-8 from open play; UC San Diego finished with a 45.3 field-goal percentage.
McGhie caught fire midway through the half, swishing three straight three-pointers to make it 67-41 with eight minutes remaining.
An unrelenting Triton defense led to shooting inefficiencies for the Matadors, who finished the second half with a 43.3 field-goal percentage. UC San Diego also forced six turnovers during the half.
Despite a late-game 10-0 point run for CSUN, UC San Diego's cultivated lead was enough to hold off the Matadors for an 83-62 final score.
TRITON TIDBITS
- UC San Diego is a perfect 5-0 against CSUN as a member of The Big West.
- Bryce Pope moved into eighth place on the Tritons' all-time scoring list, now with 1,435 career points.
- UC San Diego is one of three teams (along with Liberty and Wisconsin) to use the same starting lineup in each game this season.
- The Tritons wore their white uniforms on Thursday.
QUOTABLE
UP NEXT
UC San Diego kicks off the second half of conference play on the road for a rematch against Long Beach State. The Tritons defeated LBSU 88-74 on Jan. 11. Saturday's game tips off at 4 p.m. and airs 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.
