Anteaters close out UC Davis

IRVINE — One of two seniors being honored on senior night, Nic Campbell stumbled midway through the first half of Thursday’s nonconference home finale at the Bren Events Center.

Campbell’s UC Irvine men’s basketball teammates stumbled, briefly, as well in the second half.

Neither misstep, however, turned out to be more than an unfortunate footnote to the Anteaters’ 73-59 victory in front of 2,479.

Campbell, who scored 43 points in two games last week, including a career-high 24 in Saturday’s loss at San Francisco, was felled with a right-ankle sprain with 9:32 left in the opening half.

He did not return, though UCI Coach Pat Douglass said afterward that the decision to bench him was one of caution, with just one Big West Conference game left before the Big West Tournament, March 7-10, at the Anaheim Convention Center.

Campbell finished with three points, one assist and one rebound in eight minutes.

The other UCI senior, Mark Kelley, opened the contest as if he were going to make it a memorable one. He scored eight of the hosts’ first 13 points, making four of five field-goal attempts, to help spur what became a 20-9 cushion.

Kelley, who had 10 points at halftime, finished with 12, to go with six rebounds, two blocks and one assist.

Kelley’s feel-good finale suffered when foul trouble limited his minutes after intermission, as UC Davis, which joins the Big West officially next season, whittled a 41-24 halftime deficit to 55-46, before some long-range shooting by UCI helped rebuff any further comeback attempts.

The Anteaters made four of their final seven field goals from three-point range to improve to 13-16 and finish 9-3 on their home floor.

UCI, still trying to gain ground to earn one of the top four seeds in the eight-team conference tournament, made 11 of 22 from threedom, as seven different players nailed at least one three-pointer.

UCI also finished with just 11 turnovers, four fewer than the Aggies (4-21), who have now lost nine straight.

UCI won the rebounding battle, 40-31, which helped them produce 22 second-chance points, to just seven by the visitors.

Junior Patrick Sanders led the winners with 15 points and he added eight rebounds and three blocks.

Freshman point guard Michael Hunter matched his career high with three three-pointers, on his way to 13 points. He chipped in two assists and did not have a turnover.

Junior Darren Fells had a game-high 12 rebounds to go with his five points off the bench, while junior guard Chuma Awaji had nine points and sophomore Adam Templeton added seven points and four rebounds.

“It was nice that Campbell and Kelley could win their last game at home,” Douglass said. “It was a shame that Nic sprained his ankle, because he had been playing really well lately.”

The Anteaters complete their regular season Thursday at first-place Long Beach State.

“That’s going to be our biggest game of the season,” Kelley said.

UCI, 6-7 in conference, is chasing UC Santa Barbara (6-5) and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (6-5 and tied for third), as well as Pacific (5-5, sitting in fifth).

A top-four finish would result in a first-round bye in the conference tournament. The fifth- through eighth-place teams will square off on the first day of the tournament.

Freshman Dominic Calegari, who had three of the Aggies’ four three-pointers, scored a career-high 21 points.

NonconferenceUC Davis -- Calegari 21, Juillerat 11, Portz 10, Oliver 2, Henry-Ala 6, Marentez 4, Carter 3, Warmerdam 2.

UC Irvine 73, UC Davis 59

3-pt. goals -- Calegari 3, Henry-Ala 1.

Fouled out -- None.

Technicals -- None.

UC Irvine -- Saunders 15, Campbell 3, Kelley 12, Hunter 13, Awaji 9, Templeton 7, DeCasas 6, Fells 5, McIntosh 3.

3-pt. goals -- Hunter 3, DeCasas 2, Sanders 2, Campbell 1, Awaji 1, McIntosh 1, Templeton 1.

Fouled out -- None.

Technicals -- None.

Halftime -- 41-24, UCI.