The UCI Men’s Basketball team (6-2) fell in a close affair against the Duquesne Dukes (5-2), 62-66, at Cooper Fieldhouse in Pittsburgh on Wednesday, Nov. 29.
Prior to the Thanksgiving weekend, UCI participated in the Ball Dawgs Classic, a six-team exhibition showcase. The ‘Eaters managed to net three straight wins with victories over Pepperdine on Nov. 21, Toledo on Nov. 22 and Rice University on Nov. 24 at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nevada.
The ‘Eaters were without junior center Bent Leuchten and redshirt sophomore forward Akiva McBirney-Griffin due to injury, which opened the door for freshman forward Carter Welling to start his fourth game of the season. As of Nov. 30, there is no date set as to when either player will see the court.
Despite the loss, UCI redshirt senior guard Justin Hohn, senior guard Andre Henry and freshman guard Derin Saran collectively mustered 37 points on terrific shooting splits. For the season, the ‘Eaters averaged a respectable 12 turnovers, although numerous mistakes against Duquesne amounted to 20 turnovers and 17 points off turnovers, ultimately clouding the ‘Eaters’ chances to win. UCI and Duquesne equally utilized the paint with 28 points apiece, which was perhaps influenced by the absence of Leuchten and McBirney-Griffin.
In the opening four minutes, both teams struggled to score and racked up a total of five turnovers. Hohn ended the drought for the Anteaters with a sharp basket from beyond the arc.
At the eight-minute mark, graduate guard Dylan Thoerner strung together three freethrows to pull the ‘Eaters ahead, 16-13. The ‘Eaters rained down three assisted baskets and two freethrows to complete a 11-3 run that put them ahead, 27-16.
The ‘Eaters didn’t fall too far behind and managed to stay within four points by the end of the half, 31-35.
In the second half, UCI and Duquesne traded back-to-back baskets until a slew of UCI turnovers poised Duquesne for a six-point swing, 33-43.
UCI’s Henry and Saran scored seven straight points; however, their efforts were nullified by timely dunks from Duquesne sophomore forward David Dixon and sharpshooter graduate forward Andrei Savrasov.
The ‘Eaters were kept at a manageable deficit for most of the game, until the three-minute mark.
Hohn drained back-to-back threes to put the ‘Eaters down, 58-61, with 90 seconds left to play. The ‘Eaters then fouled Dixon to a one-and-one free throw attempt. Fortunately for the ‘Eaters, Dixon missed the first free throw and they gained possession.
Still, the ‘Eaters failed to score on the ensuing next two possessions. In the first possession, Hohn drove in for a layup, but Duquesne senior guard Jimmy Clark III grasped the ball and forced a jump-ball call. In the second, what seemed to be a botched play forced Hohn to attempt a tough layup that resulted in a no-call turnover, and soon after the ‘Eaters were forced to foul.
The ‘Eaters tried to keep the game alive by fouling, hoping Duquesne would miss a free throw and they could score on the other end. However, Duquesne went perfect from the line in the final seconds and the score settled at 62-66.
With the loss, the Anteaters fell to 6-2 on the season, dropping their second contest of the young campaign.
Jason Garcia Escobar is a Sports Staff Writer. He can be reached at jasonag3@uci.edu.
