Hot first half earns UCI home-opening win

IRVINE — What it must have imagined as an innocuous preliminary side trip before its West Coast main event, went sideways Tuesday for the South Carolina men’s basketball team.

Instead of a victorious tuneup to its USC showdown against the Trojans Thursday in the University of Southern California’s first game at the newly christened Galen Center, the Gamecocks ran into a game — some might have said wounded — bunch of Anteaters.

The result was a 67-52 nonconference victory for UCI that might shed new light on how good Coach Pat Douglass’ team could be.

“This is a great win for us,” said Douglass, who had only one day of practice to tinker with a team that went 1-2 in three games in three days in a weekend tournament at Fresno State.

In those three games, including a 31-point drubbing by the host Bulldogs, after which Douglass thanked the Fresno State coach for “pulling the dogs off’” in the second half to keep the margin of victory down, the Anteaters, to a man, admitted they needed work.

“We struggled a lot in Fresno,” said UCI sophomore forward Adam Templeton, who did anything but Tuesday.

“We competed in Fresno, but we had to bear down a lot better and stick to our principles,” said junior forward Patrick Sanders, who was one of four UCI scorers in double figures against the Southeastern Conference visitor.

South Carolina was the first team from the respected and storied 12-school alliance to play in the 20 seasons the Anteaters have competed in the Bren Events Center.

“We took a look at the things we did wrong in Fresno and we tried to correct them in practice on Monday,” said Douglass, whose team averaged 19.3 turnovers and shot 40.7% from the field in its first three games.

The Anteaters didn’t look like the same team Tuesday. And, in reality, they weren’t.

Chuma Awaji, a junior transfer from Lon Morris Community College in Texas, moved from off guard to point guard in the starting lineup.

That lineup, for the first time, also included freshman wing Chad DeCasas, as junior Texas A&M; transfer Marcus McIntosh came off the bench for the first time as an Anteater.

“With Chuma at the point, I thought we were much more effective,” Douglass said. “He took care of the ball [none of UCI’s season-low 11 turnovers] and he got us into our offense. “I thought he was much more aggressive advancing the ball. We were just a little smoother, offensively, than we have been.”

Templeton, who posted his second career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds, both team highs, said his team’s effectiveness on offense complimented its solid defensive effort.

“We got in our offense better,” Templeton said. “I think it was an overall group effort.

“I think our defense was good in Fresno and we carried that over.”

The Anteaters helped limit the Gamecocks (1-1), who won the last two NIT titles and played eventual national champion Florida tough in the final of the conference tournament last season, to just 35.6% shooting from the field (21 of 59).

South Carolina, picked to finish sixth in the six-team East Division of the Southeastern Conference, made just four of 24 three-point attempts (16.7%).

Meanwhile, UCI shot 46.7% from the field (21 of 45) and was four of 10 from threedom.

After USC went ahead, 16-15, with 7:02 left in the first half, the ‘Eaters scored 15 of the final 18 points of the half to claim a 30-19 edge at intermission.

Keyed by three three-pointers, including two by Templeton, who netted three of four from beyond the arc, UCI opened the second half on an 11-2 run and was never seriously threatened.

Templeton finished six of nine from the field.

UCI junior center Darren Fells (11 points) made five of eight field-goal attempts.

Sanders, who finished with 15 points, seven rebounds and a team-high four assists and two steals, made five of 10 field-goal tries.

Awaji chipped in 11 points and three assists in 29 minutes, while McIntosh, the starting point guard the first three games, had nine points and three assists in 17 minutes.

DeCasas had five points, three rebounds, two assists and two turnovers in 26 minutes.

“I thought Marcus played much better in the second half,” said Douglass, who was all smiles afterward. “This is a confidence builder.”

Douglass stopped short of saying he saw his team’s breakthrough performance coming.

“If you would have told me we’d click offensively, I’d have said we would have had a chance,” Douglass said. “I thought Chuma did a remarkable job and, as the game went on, we got more and more confidence.”

Douglass said the modest crowd of 2,338, less than half of capacity, may have learned something about this year’s team.

“Hopefully, the people who came tonight enjoyed themselves,” Douglass said. “They have to like the way our team competes. Maybe they can tell their friends and we can get more [fans] out.”

Douglass needs no such convincing.

“I like the way this team plays,” he said. “We’ve got a long way to go, but this was a step in the right direction.”

Nonconference

UC Irvine 67,

South Carolina 52

South Carolina -- Day 8, Archie 4, Wallace 4, Sheldon 12, Kelley 10, Raley-Ross 14.

3-pt. goals -- Sheldon 2, Day 2.

Fouled out -- Raley-Ross, Day.

Technicals -- None.

UC Irvine -- Sanders 15, Templeton 16, Fells 11, Awaji 11, DeCasas 5, McIntosh 9

3-pt. goals -- Templeton 3, Hunter 1.

Fouled out -- None.

Technicals -- None.

Halftime -- 30-19, UCI.