UC Irvine’s total team effort Saturday at UC Riverside was a huge difference from what it turned in Friday. But it really couldn’t have been worse.
A day after a 21-point loss to the Highlanders, the Anteaters came back with an impressive 73-67 win to split the weekend series and regain some confidence.
The big effort came from Collin Welp. The 6-foot-9 junior forward was the hub of the team’s play, sparking several important runs during the game while scoring a season-high 27 points and grabbing 13 rebounds.
Welp had two baskets and an assist during an 11-0 run early in the second half that turned a nine-point deficit into a lead; dropped a 3-pointer moments after UCR had regained the lead; and down the stretch had a putback of a missed shot, drew a charge and then punctuated the game with a turn-around fadeaway 3-pointer.
Brad Greene had 10 points and seven rebounds and Jeron Artest and Isaiah Lee hit 3-pointers down the stretch in between Welp’s dramatics. The team defense was superlative late, UCR making just three field goals in the final 10 minutes, one of those a meaningless 3-pointer at the buzzer.
Arinze Chidom had 17 points and Dominic Pickett 10 for the Highlanders.
“He performed like a leader,” UCI coach Russell Turner said of Welp after the win. “But it’s just as important to talk about what he did on defense as much as his 27 and 13.
“We adjusted from Friday and Collin guarded their big center (Jock Perry) and did a good job, and then late he drew a charge by Chidom.”
The 7-1, 250-pound Perry was held to 2-for-9 shooting on Saturday, while UCI dominated the boards 45-30 and held a 30-16 advantage in paint points.
“The passion was there tonight,” Turner said. “The guys responded with character. Brad played well in the second half after some bad luck early and we got those late 3-pointers from Jeron and Isaiah.”
UCI improved to 11-7 overall and 7-3 in Big West Conference play, bunched at the top with UC Santa Barbara (8-2), Bakersfield (8-4) and Riverside (9-5 overall, 5-3 Big West).
The Anteaters’ 21-point loss Friday was their most lopsided in regulation league play since a 22-point defeat in 2016-17, and surprising in the way UCR dominated the game.
From the outset Saturday, the energy level was high. The Anteaters were giving the Highlanders’ perimeter players very little room to shoot a night after they went 14 for 26 from 3-point range.
The first half was close throughout. Down by four, Welp had back-to-back baskets to draw even at 35, but the Anteaters had a late defensive breakdown and Chidom hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give UCR a 39-35 lead.
Chidom hit a basket and Zyon Pullin a 3-pointer to start the second half and extend the Riverside lead to nine at 44-35. That’s when Welp started surgically cutting up the Highlander defense. He had jumpers on each end of the 11-0 run as well as a nice assist on a Greene basket for a 46-44 lead.
“We make our runs off our defense, it’s what we built our culture on,” Turner said. “It’s that critical learning which allows us to figure out a way to overcome things.”
UCR regained a four-point lead at 56-52 on a 3-pointer from George Wilborn III with 10:03 left, but Welp and a strong defensive effort led to a 21-8 closing run. Welp’s layup with 4:18 left made it 63-61 and UCI led the rest of the way. A 3-pointer from Chidom with 2:32 left got the Highlanders within 66-64, but it was one of only three Highlander field goals in the final 10 minutes, the last one a meaningless 3-pointer at game’s end.
After Welp’s fadeaway jumper, UCR came up empty on its next four possessions, firing up three errant 3-point shots and turning the ball over once.
The Anteaters are scheduled to play at Cal State Fullerton (5-6, 4-6) next Friday and Saturday (5 p.m.), though Fullerton has had to cancel its past four games due to COVID-19 protocols. UCR next plays two at UC San Diego (4-7, 0-0).
—– BIG WEST STANDINGS —–
Team — conference record, overall record
UC Santa Barbara – 8-2, 14-3
UC Irvine – 7-3, 11-7
Cal State Bakersfield – 8-4, 14-7
UC Riverside – 5-3, 9-5
UC Davis – 3-3, 6-6
Hawaii – 5-7, 7-7
Cal State Fullerton – 4-6, 5-6
Cal State Northridge – 3-5, 7-8
Long Beach State – 2-4, 3-7
Cal Poly – 1-9, 3-13
UC San Diego – 0-0, 4-7
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