LONG BEACH, Calif. – UC San Diego junior
Aidan Burke scored a career-high 18 points as the Tritons began Big West play with an 80-74 win at Long Beach State Saturday night inside the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid. The Tritons shot 52% overall and 45% from distance on the way to the victory.
Bol Dengdit and
Leo Beath each scored 14 in the win, with
Alex Chaikin adding 11. UC San Diego improved to 8-1 overall (1-0 Big West) while the Beach wraps up Big West Bold Week with a 2-8 record (0-2 in conference).
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Beach scored the game's first five points but five straight from Burke – a three-pointer then a driving layup – leveled the score. Two more corner threes from Burke and UC San Diego took its first lead, 11-8, with 13:47 on the clock. Burke scored the Tritons' first 11 points.
The game was even with neither team able to pull away. A layup by
Dimitrije Vukicevic at 8:42 put UC San Diego on top, 19-17. The bucket was the first of Vukicevic's career and keyed a 7-0 Tritons run. UC San Diego hit six of its final eight shot attempts of the half and the Tritons led, 34-30 at the break. Burke led all scorers with those quick 11. UC San Diego hit 50% of its shots (12-24) and 46% from distance (6-13). The Tritons were credited with eight assists on the 12 field goals, with
Emanuel Prospere II doling out four.
Prospere hit a free throw to begin the second half before Long Beach answered with an 8-0 run to take a 38-35 lead and force a Triton timeout. The game was level at 42 apiece before the Tritons scored nine straight – a Beath jumper, a
Tom Beattie layup, a fast break Chaikin three, and a driving Chaikin layup to give UC San Diego a 51-42 lead with 12:48 to play.
The Tritons shot 54% after halftime and connected on 76% of their free throw attempts in the win.
TRITON TIDBITS
- Aidan Burke has scored in double figures in five of the last six games.
- Saturday marked just the second time this season a UC San Diego opponent scored the game's first points. On Nov. 25, Bradley led 5-0 before the Tritons scored (an 87-77 UC San Diego win). Tonight, the Beach took a 5-0 lead.
- UC San Diego has now won 35 consecutive games when leading at halftime going back to 2024. The Tritons are 7-0 this season when leading at the break.
- UC San Diego leads the all-time series between these teams, 5-4. Saturday was the Tritons' second win in the Pyramid.
- The UC San Diego starting lineup has been Emanuel Prospere II, Aidan Burke, Tom Beattie, Leo Beath and Bol Dengdit for all nine games this season.
QUOTABLE
UP NEXT
UC San Diego heads to Vegas next week to take part in the Jack Jones Classic. The Tritons will face Tulane on Dec. 13 at. 9 p.m. at Lee's Family Forum – site of The Big West Championship in March. Links to live video (pay) and live stats can be found 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 has begun a new era as a member of The Big West in NCAA Division I. The 24-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 garnered 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 NCAA Division I or II. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.
