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UC Irvine center Brad Greene blocks a shot by UC Riverside’s Zyon Pullin during their Big West Tournament semifinal on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Jeron Artest #15 of the UC Irvine Anteaters defends Zyon Pullin #5 of the UC Riverside Highlanders during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Dominick Pickett #22 and Flynn Cameron #11 of the UC Riverside Highlanders double team Jeron Artest #15 of the UC Irvine Anteaters during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Oliver Hayes-Brown #10 of the UC Riverside Highlanders fouls Collin Welp #40 of the UC Irvine Anteaters during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: George Willborn III #35 of the UC Riverside Highlanders is tripped up by Isaiah Lee #5 of the UC Irvine Anteaters during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Anteaters won 78-61 and will face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the championship game. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Head coach Russell Turner of the UC Irvine Anteaters calls for a player during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game against the UC Riverside Highlanders at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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UC Irvine’s Isaiah Lee passes around UC Riverside’s Zyon Pullin during their Big West Tournament semifinal on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Collin Welp #40 of the UC Irvine Anteaters is defended by Arinze Chidom #1 of the UC Riverside Highlanders during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Anteaters won 78-61 and will face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the championship game. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Collin Welp #40 of the UC Irvine Anteaters high fives DJ Davis #22 after a three-point basket during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game against UC Riverside at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Jeron Artest #15 of the UC Irvine Anteaters defends Zyon Pullin #5 of the UC Riverside Highlanders during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Anteaters won 78-61 and will face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the championship game. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Head coach Mike Magpayo of the UC Riverside Highlanders directs his team during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game against the UC Irvine Anteaters at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Anteaters won 78-61 and will face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the championship game. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Arinze Chidom #1 of the UC Riverside Highlanders is pressured by, from left, Jeron Artest #15, Brad Greene #55, and Collin Welp #40 of the UC Irvine Anteaters during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game against the UC Riverside Highlanders at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Anteaters won 78-61 and will face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the championship game. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Flynn Cameron #11 of the UC Riverside Highlanders hits the floor as Brad Greene #55 of the UC Irvine Anteaters reaches for a rebound during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Austin Johnson #13 of the UC Irvine Anteaters guards Jock Perry #15 of the UC Riverside Highlanders during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Anteaters won 78-61 and will face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the championship game. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Jock Perry #15 of the UC Riverside Highlanders shoots over Austin Johnson #13 of the UC Irvine Anteaters during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Brad Greene #55 of the UC Irvine Anteaters passes a loose ball to teammate Dawson Baker #1 during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game against the UC Riverside Highlanders at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Anteaters won 78-61 and will face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the championship game. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: Flynn Cameron #11 of the UC Riverside Highlanders drives past Emmanuel Tshimanga #25 of the UC Irvine Anteaters during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game against the UC Irvine Anteaters at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Anteaters won 78-61 and will face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the championship game. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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UC Irvine’s Dawson Baker drives with the ball during a Big West Tournament semifinal against UC Riverside on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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UC Riverside’s Zyon Pullin handles the ball during a Big West Tournament semifinal against UC Irvine on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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UC Irvine’s Collin Welp shoots over the UC Riverside defense during their Big West Tournament semifinal on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: The UC Irvine Anteaters take on the UC Riverside Highlanders during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game against the UC Irvine Anteaters at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
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UC Riverside’s Dominick Pickett likes what he sees during a Big West Tournament semifinal against UC Irvine on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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UC Irvine’s JeRon Artest handles the ball on the perimeter during a Big West Tournament semifinal against UC Riverside on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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UC Riverside’s Flynn Cameron handles the ball during a Big West Tournament semifinal against UC Irvine on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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UC Irvine senior center Brad Greene shoots over the UC Riverside defense during their Big West Tournament semifinal on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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UC Riverside’s Dominick Pickett shoots a free throw during a Big West Tournament semifinal against UC Irvine on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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UC Irvine’s Dawson Baker watches the flight of his shot during a Big West Tournament semifinal against UC Riverside on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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UC Riverside’s William Tattersall, left, and UC Irvine’s Isaiah Lee share a laugh during their Big West Tournament semifinal on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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UC Irvine players and staff celebrate late in their Big West Tournament semifinal victory over UC Riverside on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. (Photo courtesy of Big West Conference)
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – MARCH 12: A general view as the UC Riverside Highlanders take on the UC Irvine Anteaters during their Big West Basketball tournament semifinals game against the UC Riverside Highlanders at Michelob ULTRA Arena on March 12, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Anteaters won 78-61 and will face the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in the championship game. (Photo by Sam Morris/Getty Images)
UC Irvine’s path to the Big West Tournament title game in 2020-21 wasn’t the same as the last few. It was a bit more zig-zag for the Anteaters than past seasons when they were dominant.
Regardless of how they navigated their way there, they are back in the title game for the fourth consecutive time, and sixth in the past nine years, with an asterisk on the 2020 season when they were the No. 1 seed before the pandemic ended the season before the event could tip-off.
UCI played what Coach Russ Turner said was one of their best games of the season in a 78-61 semifinal victory over UC Riverside on Friday night at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. There weren’t many letdowns during the game, and the team defense kept the scrappy Highlanders from really getting close.
The second-seeded Anteaters (18-8) will meet top-seeded UC Santa Barbara (21-4) in Saturday’s 8:30 p.m. title game (ESPN2) with the conference’s automatic berth in the 68-team NCAA Tournament at stake. The Anteaters won the two regular-season games against the Gauchos in late December at the Bren Events Center, but UCSB has lost just once since on its way to the regular-season conference title.
“We came out and executed well on offense and defense, and it was a good game at a critical moment,” Turner said. “We answered the challenge I’ve given them.
“There have been games this year when we had established control and then given it up. Tonight, the guys were in their right spots and we made a lot of key passes on breaks.”
Third-seeded UCR (14-8) established a beachhead with its highest seeding in the tournament and its first tournament win since 2011. The Highlanders were also the only team in the conference to beat both UCI and UCSB this season.
Turner said the Highlanders’ 21-point win against his team was a rare rout that caught his team’s notice and said it shows that UCR had turned a corner.
“It’s especially hard given this is the first year with the group, and we deserved a better showing,” Highlanders coach Mike Magpayo said. “They ran us off the 3-point line and punched us hard in the face early. We kind of recovered but never got close enough where we felt we could really cut into them.”
Freshman guard Dawson Baker led UC Irvine with 17 points and five rebounds, his first 10 points coming in the game’s opening minutes. Junior forward Collin Welp scored 17 points with six rebounds on a 3-for-14 night when a lot of shots rolled off the rim, but he went 11 for 14 from the free-throw line, where the Anteaters finished 26 for 30 (16 for 19 in the second half).
Freshman guard DJ Davis added 14 points, and senior center Brad Greene had eight points, seven rebounds and three blocked shots.
Arinze Chidom and Jock Perry scored 16 points each to lead the Highlanders, and Chidom’s three consecutive 3-pointers early in the second half got them within seven, before UCI regained its edge.
“It’s just been a journey,” Chidom, a senior, said of his UCR career and the program’s breakthrough season. “There were times when everything seemed unsure, but we always adapted to what we faced. This has been the best season at UCR, and there’s a lot of pride in the program.”
The Anteaters jumped on UCR, Baker scoring 10 points on two jump shots, a driving layup, a 3-pointer and two free throws during an 18-4 run in the first seven minutes.
The Highlanders got within six on a Wil Tattersall 3-pointer and free throws. Davis responded with a pair of 3-pointers during a 12-4 run that pushed the Anteaters’ lead back to 12.
JeRon Artest hit a 3-pointer to start the second half, but Chidom then dropped his three 3-pointers. UCI countered with an 8-0 run and was never truly threatened after that. A Davis jumper put the Anteaters ahead 62-46 with 8:41 left – matching their largest lead of the game.
UCR used a 12-5 run over the next five minutes to trim the margin to nine. But Baker and Isaiah Lee scored back-to-back, pushing UCI’s advantage back to 14 and the Anteaters closed it out with free throws.
In the first semifinal …
UCSB 71, UC Davis 55: Amadou Sow scored a season-high 23 points as the Gauchos took control early and cruised into the championship game. Sow was 9 for 10 from the free-throw line and 7 for 12 from the field while grabbing seven rebounds. Big West Player of the Year JaQuori McLaughlin added 17 points, and Ajare Sanni had 16.
UCSB (21-4) never trailed, led by 12 at halftime and was never seriously challenged in the second half. The Gauchos were 28 for 34 at the free-throw line while the Aggies (10-8) were 6 for 8. Christian Anigwe had 15 points and eight rebounds and Elijah Pepper added 13 points for UC Davis.
NOTES
UCI is trying to become the first program to win back-to-back Big West Tournament titles since UCSB in 2010-2011. … UCI shot 46% (23 for 50) from the field and held the Highlanders to 34.4% (21 for 61) shooting from the field and just 20.7 percent (6 for 29) from 3-point range. UCI had more rebounds (32-26), fast-break points (17-6) and bench points (22-12). … UCI improved to 6-0 all-time against UCR in the tournament. … The Anteaters are riding a season-high six-game winning streak.
Big West Tournament Semifinal postgame press conference. Dawson Baker & Russell Turner discuss the 78-61 victory over #3 UC Riverside. https://t.co/jwr2lJhwX0
— UCI Men’s Basketball (@UCImbb) March 13, 2021
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