Overview:
Gauchos open Big West Play at 2-0 for the first time in four seasons
Old acquaintance was not forgot on this New Year’s Eve for the UC Santa Barbara men’s basketball team.
The Gauchos, who were upset at UC San Diego in last year’s league opener, avoided another eve of destruction on Saturday by rallying in the second half for an 82-61 victory at the Thunderdome.
“That was a big punch in the face and a wakeup call,” Miles Norris said of last year’s 85-83, overtime defeat in La Jolla. “We made sure we didn’t do that today, though.”
Norris was one of four Gauchos to reach double-figure scoring, netting 13 points to go with five rebounds. UCSB shot 55.5% overall and 47.4% from the three-point line (9-for-19).
The victory capped a 7-0 December for the Gauchos (11-2, 2-0 Big West Conference). The Tritons, who pulled out an overtime victory at Long Beach State on Thursday, drop to 6-8.
Nobody had a hotter December than Ajay Mitchell. UCSB’s sophomore point guard made 8-for-14 shots, 3-of-6 three-pointers and 4-of-4 free throws to lead all scorers with 23 points.
It marked his fourth-straight 20-plus-point game. He’s averaged 23.5 points in that stretch to improve his season scoring average to a team-best 16.6 per game. He was once again the engine to a Gaucho comeback, getting five of his six assists in the second half to help them turn a 43-40 deficit into a 21-point victory.
“I don’t really know about that,” Mitchell replied when asked if he’s at his best when the team is behind, “but I don’t like to be behind. Maybe that’s why I play my best to win.
“We knew at halftime that we had to step it up, change our defense and be more aggressive. And we did it.”
The scrappy Tritons, missing several players including leading scorer Bryce Pope because of illness, shot holes in UCSB’s defense during the first half. They were 18-for-27 (66.7%) and 5-of-7 from the three-point line (71.4%).
Francis Nwaokorie hit a three and Quin Patterson made two more during a four-minute outburst in which San Diego outscored the Gauchos 13-2 to take a 38-33 lead.
Their freshman point guard, Roddie Anderson III, had nine of his 10 assists in the first half. He also scored 17 points. Emmanuel Tshimanga, a 7-foot transfer from UC Irvine, led UC San Diego with 18 points while Nwaokorie added 13 points with a game-high eight rebounds.
“We always say that the mental to the physical is 4-to-1, and our mental wasn’t there in the first half,” UCSB coach Joe Pasternack said. “That’s just evident by playing the same team in the second half and they score 18 points.
“But they’re a very well-coached team. They beat Long Beach the other night.”
Mitchell restored order with a three off a kick-out pass from center Andre Kelly. Calvin Wishart came off the bench to add a pair of baskets — a put-back and a jumper off another Kelly assist — to get UCSB within one point. Wishart finished with 11 points on 5-for-6 shooting, four assists and no turnovers.
“And Calvin hit a huge, huge three at Fullerton on Thursday,” Pasternack pointed out. “Calvin is our sixth man, and he’s really a sixth starter.
“He’s one of our toughest competitors. He’s matured so much from last year and I’m so excited with how he’s playing.”
A step-back three by Wishart gave UCSB its first lead in more than a dozen minutes, 52-50, with 14:48 remaining.
Kelly kept the rally going by scoring a floater off Mitchell’s pass and then following Norris’ miss with a follow dunk on consecutive trips downcourt. He finished with 11 points on 5-for-6 shooting and a team-high seven rebounds.
“Andre has been sick the past week — he was going through it — but I think today he really started to show who he is,” Pasternack said.
The Gauchos were out-rebounded 15-10 during the first half. They turned the tables on the boards during the second period, however, to win the rebound war, 31-27. Josh Pierre-Louis had a strong overall game with nine points, five rebounds, four assists and three steals. Mitchell and Norris also had three steals apiece.
“We’ve got a lot of offensive guys — everyone on our team can score — so it’s going to come down to defense and rebounding,” Norris said. “That’s what’s going to help us win at the end of the year.”
The Tritons trailed only 56-52 with 11:23 to go when UCSB put them away with a 20-to-6 run. San Diego shot just 25% in the second half, making only 1-of-8 threes, and finished the game with a field-goal percentage of 48.9%.
“I thought we played well for a big portion of the game,” Triton coach Eric Olen said. “Some of our issues you could chalk up to fatigue, but really it was more that they’re a really good team which made things hard for us.”
Mitchell hit a three and Ajare Sanni added two more during the late outburst, giving the Gauchos a 78-58 lead. UCSB’s nine three-pointers were its most since before Thanksgiving.
“Miles is a great shooter — not a good shooter, but a great three-point shooter,” Pasternack said. “Ajare Sanni is a great three-point shooter. He’s proven it five years in a row. I was so glad to see him make some threes tonight.
“Ajay Mitchell was shooting something like 28% (from three) in non-conference, and now he’s 5-for-9 in conference. He’s a great three-point shooter. It was just a matter of time until they go in. Hey, if we have to save them for conference, we’ll do that.”
The back-to-back wins mark the first time that UCSB has opened the Big West at 2-0 since it won its first three league contests of the 2018-19 season. The Gauchos went 1-4 to start conference last year.
“Last year, we had a bunch of guys coming back from having won the (Big West) tournament, so they were like, ‘Oh, we’re just going to go out and win every game,’” Mitchell said. “That didn’t happen.
“And this year, we’re coming for revenge, so everyone’s aggressive and everyone wants to win. It’s a big difference.”
