Game 13 (BW Game 2)
UC San Diego at UCSB
Saturday, December 31, 2022, 4:00 pm PST
Santa Barbara, Calif.
Quick Bite
The Gauchos (10-2, 1-0) rode Ajay Mitchell and Josh Pierre-Louis to a key road victory at defending Big West Tournament champion Cal State Fullerton on Thursday. Mitchell has scored at least 20 points in three consecutive games and is nearly impossible to stop in the final five minutes. JPL's normal motor is overdrive both offensively and defensively. Combined with his uber-athleticism, he is a joy to watch at both ends of the court...and you're required to forgive the occasional fast-twitch errors. UCSB has now won six in a row and re-established itself as the clear favorite in the conference.
Big West games finally count for the Tritons (6-7, 1-0), who are in the 3rd year of a 4-year transition to Division I. UCSD is still locked out of the Big West Tournament until 2024-25. The Tritons won their first official Big West contest with an overtime victory at Long Beach State. Bryce Pope is their smaller version of Ajay Mitchell. Pope consistently makes clutch shots down the stretch for his team. His basket with 1.4 seconds left in overtime was the game-winner at the Pyramid.
UC San Diego-UCSB History
UCSB leads the series 3-1.
January 15, 2021: W 69-52 at Santa Barbara
January 16, 2021: W 84-53 at Santa Barbara
December 30, 2021: L 83-85 OT at La Jolla
February 5, 2022: W 84-48 at Santa Barbara
The Arena
The Thunderdome
Capacity: 5,000
UCSB is offering free tickets for the game. The first 750 kids will receive a free UCSB Basketball T Shirt! Scan the QR code in the graphic below to redeem your free tickets.
Head Coach
Eric Olen
overall/UC San Diego: 185-89 (.675)
Olen is in his 10th season as head coach of the Tritons. Olen led the Tritons to three CCAA regular-season titles and four consecutive conference tournament titles in addition to four NCAA Division II tournament appearances. UCSD was 30-1 in its final season in Division II, a season that was cut short by the response to COVID-19. UCSD has adjusted well to Division I under Olen's tutelage, going 26-33 (12-19 vs. Big West foes) in 2+ seasons. Olen played at Spring Hill College in Alabama where he was a part of 3 straight NAIA national tournament appearances, including an Elite Eight appearance in 2000.
UC San Diego Roster
Bryce Pope #4 JR G, 6-3 185, San Diego, CA -- 19.2 Pts, 3.6 Reb, 1.3 Ast
Roddie Anderson #0 FR G, 6-2 190, Huntington Beach, CA -- 9.1 Pts, 3.1 Reb, 3.2 Ast
Francis Nwaokorie #35 SO F, 6-7 220, Brooklyn Park, MN -- 9.2 Pts, 7.0 Reb, 1.3 Ast
Emmanuel Tshimanga #25 JR C, 7-0 300, Montreal, Canada -- 8.0 Pts, 7.6 Reb, 0.6 Ast
J'Raan Brooks #33 SR F, 6-9 220, Seattle, WA -- 9.9 Pts, 6.0 Reb, 1.5 Ast
Jace Roquemore #22 JR G, 6-5 160, Henderson, NV -- 5.5 Pts, 2.9 Reb, 2.8 Ast
Jake Kosakowski #1 JR F, 6-6 202, Chicago, IL -- 5.9 Pts, 1.8 Reb, 0.6 Ast
Justin DeGraaf #3 SO F, 6-7 210, Hudsonville, MI -- 3.8 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 0.4 Ast
Vuk Vulikic #20 JR G, 6-4 192, Sveti Nikola (Serbia) -- 1.7 Pts, 0.6 Reb, 0.9 Ast
Quin Patterson #15 FR G, 6-7 205, Snoqualmie, WA -- 1.5 Pts, 0.8 Reb, 0.1 Ast
Camden McCormick #10 FR G, 6-3 190, San Diego, CA -- 0.8 Pts, 1.0 Reb, 0.5 Ast
UCSB Roster
Ajay Mitchell #13 SO G, 6-4 180, Sainte Marie Namur (Belgium) -- 16.1 Pts, 3.3 Reb, 4.5 Ast
Miles Norris #5 SR F, 6-10 220, San Diego, CA -- 12.7 Pts, 6.4 Reb, 1.7 Ast
Josh Pierre-Louis #1 SR G, 6-4 185, Plainfield, NJ -- 10.6 Pts, 3.5 Reb, 2.4 Ast
Andre Kelly #2 SR F, 6-8 255, Stockton, CA -- 8.8 Pts, 6.9 Reb, 1.0 Ast
Cole Anderson #4 SO G, 6-4 185, Fresno, CA -- 6.9 Pts, 1.4 Reb, 0.8 Ast
Calvin Wishart #10 SR G, 6-1 180, Delano, MN -- 6.9 Pts, 3.1 Reb, 2.8 Ast
Ajare Sanni #3 SR G, 6-3 170, Houston, TX -- 6.9 Pts, 2.6 Reb, 1.0 Ast
Jakov Kukic #14 JR F, 6-10 230, Split, Croatia -- 1.8 Pts, 2.6 Reb, 0.1 Ast
Koat Keat Tong #00 FR F, 6-9 215, Bentiu, South Sudan -- 1.2 Pts, 2.9 Reb, 0.3 Ast
Evans Kipruto #12 JR F, 6-8 250, Nairobi, Kenya -- 1.0 Pts, 1.3 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Matija Belic #32 FR G, 6-7 205, Belgrade, Serbia -- 0.3 Pts, 0.9 Reb, 0.1 Ast
Gage Gomez #50 JR G, 6-3 190, Arroyo Grande, CA -- 1.0 Pts, 0.0 Reb, 1.0 Ast
David Pickles #40 SO F, 6-10 235, Seattle, WA -- 1.0 Pts, 1.0 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Ariel Bland #23 SO F, 6-7 215, Eden Prairie, MN -- 0.0 Pts, 1.5 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Henry Hartwell #51 FR G, 6-5 180, Oceanside, CA -- 0.0 Pts, 0.5 Reb, 0.0 Ast
Max Sheldon #53 SO G, 5-11 180, Santa Barbara, CA -- 0.0 Pts, 0.0 Reb, 0.0 Ast
UC San Diego National Ranking Outliers
Team
Note: UCSD's statistics do not count in Division I during its transition. The following are unofficial and include all 363 teams.
Assists per game: 293 (11.9)
Blocks per game: 317 (2.2)
Field goal percentage: 334 (.406)
Scoring offense: 304 (67.0 ppg)
Three-point percentage: 330 (.297)
Three-point percentage defense: 322 (.366)
Turnovers Forced per game: 323 (11.2)
UCSB National Ranking Outliers
Team (out of 352 ranked Division I teams)
Field Goal percentage: 52 (.477)
Rebound margin: 39 (+6.7)
Scoring defense: 69 (64.1 ppg)
Three Point attempts per game: 342 (16.1)
Three Pointers per game: 330 (5.2)
Winning percentage: 30 (.833)
Players
Ajay Mitchell -- Assists per game: 83 (4.5), Free Throw percentage: 95 (.844), Free Throws: 67 (54), Steals: 86 (1.92)
Andre Kelly -- Rebounds (defensive) per game: 97 (5.5)
Prediction
The Tritons don't wow you statistically but they play hard and have an intangible player who can beat you in Bryce Pope. The UCSB engine is still sputtering despite having not lost since November. Andre Kelly can't seem to stay on the floor due to foul trouble, and Miles Norris and Ajare Sanni have been inconsistent in their performance. The bench doesn't bring much scoring punch and the team shies away from shooting 3-pointers, probably with good reason. Still, this is a game the Gauchos should easily win. UCSB 74, UC San Diego 58.
Official Site: https://ucsdtritons.com/sports/mens-basketball
Hey Guys!: none
How to Watch: https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/id/ ... d1a5fef740
Live stats: http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=428856
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