Overview:
Ajay Mitchell named Tournament MVP after averaging 24 points in three tournament games
HENDERSON, Nev. — It became mere child’s play for Ajay Mitchell to take UC Santa Barbara to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament.
“Since I’ve been a kid, I’ve been dreaming of this and going dancing,” he said after turning that dream into a reality at the Dollar Loan Center on Saturday. “It’s amazing.”
The sophomore from Belgium closed the deal with his third-straight big finish, scoring 12 of his game-high 20 points in the final eight minutes to rally the Gauchos to a 72-62 victory over Cal State Fullerton in the final of the Big West Conference Basketball Tournament.
Mitchell averaged 24 points for the three games to win the tournament’s Most Valuable Player Award. Teammate Miles Norris joined him on the all-tournament team.
“Ajay, obviously, was spectacular,” UCSB coach Joe Pasternack said.
The Gauchos were also able to “Wishart upon a star,” with fellow guard Calvin Wishart scoring half of his 16 points in the game’s final two minutes and nine seconds.
“He’s one of the best I’ve played with,” Wishart said of Mitchell, “so being right next to him every night, I’m feeling pretty good and pretty confident.
“I didn’t really have to stress too much.”
The victory earned the Gauchos (27-7) their second automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament in the last three years. They’ll learn their destination and opponent when the 68-team bracket is announced Sunday at 3 p.m. on CBS Sports’ NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship Selection Show.
Saturday’s win was their eighth straight since a 74-60 home loss to Fullerton. The Feb. 20 defeat had been their third in a row and it came at a time when they’d also lost key players Ajare Sanni and Koat Keat Tong to injuries.
“It’s just amazing with the adversity our players faced,” Pasternack said. “Losing three in a row, it could have gone straight down in a spiral.
“It’s a credit to them, to their character, to their competitiveness, that we just kept grinding and fighting and honoring our process every single day. We didn’t change a thing.”
UCSB, seeded No. 2 in the tournament, halted an eight-game winning streak for the fourth-seeded Titans (20-13).
The Gauchos, however, had to climb out of a hole for the third-straight day. Fullerton’s Max Jones scored three straight baskets in a one-minute flurry, capping it with a three-point play to put Fullerton ahead 9-3.
Jones earned a team-high 18 points, as well as an endorsement from coach Dedrique Taylor that came with an edge of anger.
“He’s one of the best players in this conference,” Taylor said. “For the coaches to vote him as an honorable mention, guys, is extremely disrespectful. But it’s on par with how the other coaches treat us in this conference … how the conference treats us.
“Max is a hell of a player, and not just tonight. Throughout the whole year. It might not show up in the stats, but what he does on the floor … It’s unbelievable in terms of his impact and his contribution to our ball club.”
The Gauchos finally got moving with Mitchell’s backdoor layup off the first of Wishart’s four assists. Cole Anderson chipped in a three-pointer and Andre Kelly scored a floater to reduce the Titans’ lead to 11-10.
Kelly also scored UCSB’s next two baskets. A side-step three by Anderson put the Gauchos ahead 17-15. Anderson finished with 12 points, making 3-of-4 threes, while Kelly just missed a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds.
Norris also made a pair of threes in the first half. UCSB was 4-for-10 from distance during the opening 20 minutes while Fullerton went just 1-for-7.
But the Titans closed to within 33-31 by halftime. And another slow start for the Gauchos, who missed seven of their first eight shots in the second half, opened the door for Fullerton. A fast-break layup by Tory San Antonio put his team ahead 37-35.
Anderson see-sawed UCSB back on top with two free throws and a three which barely beat the shot clock. Wishart added another three with a pair of foul shots to boost the lead to 45-37.
The Titans, however, rallied again. A basket by Vincent Lee gave them their last lead of 48-47 with 8:14 left.
And then Mitchell, a master in changing direction when he drives, took the game in another direction.
He scored five of UCSB’s next six baskets with a smorgasbord of moves, runners, leaners, and floaters. He only missed during that four-minute flurry when he was fouled, and he sank both free throws.
Mitchell’s last basket boosted the lead to 61-54.
Taylor conceded that his Titans had been worn down by the Gaucho defense. Latrell Wrightsell Jr., a first-team All-Big West guard, made just 6-of-17 shots including 1-of-6 threes to finish with 15 points. Fullerton shot just 39% in the second half and made only 2-of-14 threes in the game.
“You have to tip your hat to Santa Barbara,” Taylor said. “I mean, they’re a good basketball team. They’re very deep and I think that played a big factor in tonight’s game.
“For us to do what we did against Hawai’i and do what we did last night (a win over top-seeded UC Irvine) … it took a lot out of us.”
Wishart was their worst enemy in the final 2:10, scoring eight points, taking a charge, and making a steal.
“We talk about it all the time, of having passion, urgency, desperation,” Wishart said. “Those last two minutes, I was feeling that to the max.
“I’m just trying to get anything I can … Any turnover, a charge, stripping someone, whatever it is.”
He crushed Fullerton’s last hope by taking a pass from Anderson and drilling a corner three to get the Gauchos’ margin up 66-56 with 1:34 left.
“His competitiveness was awesome,” Pasternack said.
“Everybody played their role, and that’s what makes team sports so special,” he added. “We don’t win last night (against UC Riverside) if Matija Belic and Evans Kipruto don’t come off the bench and help us get to the finish line.
“We don’t win if Josh (Pierre-Louis) isn’t unbelievably spectacular last night. Andre Kelly didn’t have a great game last night but tonight, 10 rebounds in 31 minutes — that was huge for us.”
Pierre-Louis, Kelly, Norris and the injured Sanni are the only active players remaining from UCSB’s NCAA Tournament team of 2021. Wishart sat out that season after undergoing hip surgery.
“I’m just happy for the guys who haven’t been to the tournament,” Norris said. “I’m more happy for them. I’ve been there before, but hopefully we’ll get a win this time.
“I am more happy seeing my teammates celebrating and cutting down the nets. I’m happy for all the young guys who haven’t won and haven’t been there.”
There was plenty of Gaucho joy to spread all around the Dollar Loan Center on Saturday.