RIVERSIDE, Calif. – UC San Diego senior
Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones scored 32 points, but it wasn't enough as host UC Riverside earned an 85-81 victory over the Tritons in front of 1,537 at SRC Arena on Saturday evening. Barrington Hargress scored 40 to lead the Highlanders, who improved to 11-8 overall (4-3 Big West) with the win.
Tait-Jones' 32 points was the second-most scored by a Triton in the program's Division I era. UC San Diego (15-4, 5-2) lost for just the second time on the road this season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
UC Riverside scored the game's first four points, but a couple of quick steals by
Hayden Gray gave the Tritons opportunities in transition. UC San Diego drew within a point, down 7-6, before the Highlanders ran off seven straight to go up eight, 14-6.
Justin Rochelin and
Chris Howell knocked down back-to-back three-pointers, and, just like that, the Tritons were within two. Down six, Rochelin had another strong dunk, drawing a foul on the play.
UC San Diego took its first lead of the night, 24-23, on a
Nordin Kapic putback with 9:54 left in the first half – part of a 9-2 spurt for the Tritons. On the other end of the floor, UC Riverside was kept scoreless for more than three minutes.
Ultimately, the story of the first half was Hargress. The UCR sophomore scored 25 first half points on 9-of-11 shooting – and 5-5 from beyond the three-point arc. The Highlanders closed the period on a 10-2 run and took a 44-33 lead into halftime.
UC Riverside shot 59% in the first half, while the Tritons shot 42%. Keyed by Hargess, the Highlanders were 8-of-14 from distance while UC San Diego was just 2-of-10. Rochelin and Tait-Jones paced the Tritons with 10 first half points apiece. Rochelin was a perfect 4-for-4 shooting.
The Highlanders came out of the locker room continuing to shoot the ball well, and UCR built a 55-43 lead on a Hargress layup with 14:32 to play. UC San Diego answered with a 12-2 run to tie the score at 65 apiece with eight minutes left.
Hayden Gray buried a three-pointer and Tait-Jones added a couple buckets and free throws to key the spurt.
UC Riverside went back up by eight, 77-69, on a Hargress jumper with 4:53 remaining.
TRITON TIDBITS
- The Tritons are now 3-4 this season when trailing at halftime.
- The 85 points scored by UCR represent a season-high for a Triton opponent.
- Chris Howell posted a career-high six steals.
- Tait-Jones was 12-for-15 from the free throw line in the second half.
- UC San Diego swept the regular season between these two teams last season, with the Highlanders winning both meetings the year prior.
UP NEXT
UC San Diego is back at LionTree Arena to host UC Santa Barbara Thursday at 7 p.m. It's the 40th annual Spirit Night on campus, and the game will air live on Spectrum SportsNet, ESPN+, and KSDT radio, with live stats available on UCSDTritons.com. Tickets can be purchased through
Triton Box Office.
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.
