Orlando Johnson’s “Legend of the Dome” celebration turned into a block-out party for the UC Santa Barbara men’s basketball team.
The Gauchos, burned by opponent put-backs in two overtime defeats last week, literally rebounded from a three-game losing streak with Thursday’s 70-59 victory over UC Riverside.
“All five have to block out and rebound, every single possession,” UCSB coach Joe Pasternack said. “We were one rebound in the last possession of each game of being in sole possession of first place.
“We really worked hard on rebounding, and I’m really proud of these guys.”
The Gauchos out-rebounded the Highlanders 39-29 while allowing only five offensive rebounds.
The victory gives UCSB (18-11, 11-7 Big West Conference) sole possession of fourth place in the league standings, a half-game behind third-place Cal State Northridge (18-11, 11-6).
Aidan Mahaney, a senior transfer from UConn, helped the Gauchos pull away for the victory by scoring eight of his game-high 21 points in the final 6½ minutes.
“Obviously it was a real tough week,” he said of last week’s overtime defeats to Cal State Northridge and Hawai’i. “You’re 30 seconds of live, game-time play from first place in league.
“But this is the time when you just have to get tight as a group. We did a good job of rallying around each other.”
Zion Sensley helped UCSB erase a 9-6 deficit with an early, 4½-minute outburst. He made back-to-back three pointers and added a layup when Hosana Kitenge’s pass found him flashing along the right baseline.
His third three increased the Gauchos’ lead to 27-21.
“I try to put up extra shots three times a week, either late at night or after practice,” Sensley said.
The sophomore forward finished with his sixth double-double of the season by scoring 19 points and pulling down 12 rebounds.
“I gave up one offensive rebound, so that’s not OK,” Sensley said with a smile. “I feel like I didn’t have the best rebounding game last game, so I wanted to make sure I emphasized rebounding today … and while moving on forward.”
Colin Smith added 10 points and six rebounds. Five were recoveries of a teammate’s miss.
Mahaney made UCSB’s last three baskets of the first half — the final two from three-point range — to send his team into the break with a 39-27 lead.
The Gauchos got off to another slow start in the second half, however. They missed 12 of their first 15 shots, going 0-for-6 from three-point range, while committing six turnovers in the period’s first 13 minutes.
The only highlight during that stretch was the unveiling of Johnson’s Legend of the Dome banner on one of the Thunderdome walls during the first timeout of the second half.
The three-time All-American and 2010 Big West Player of the Year set UCSB’s career scoring record of 1,825 points before playing three seasons in the NBA and another decade overseas. He led the Gauchos to the NCAA Tournament in both 2010 and 2011 while earning Big West Tournament MVP honors both seasons.
The Gauchos still have high hopes of getting back to the NCAA Tournament this season.
“Defense and rebounding is our only chance,” Pasternack said. “This was an ugly, ugly game on offense — the second half we shot 30% — but we won with defense and rebounding.”
Riverside’s 38.5% shooting was the third-lowest percentage allowed by UCSB this season. The Gauchos’ subpar shooting registered at 44.2% overall. They made just 5-of-18 threes (27.8%) and 19-for-28 from the free-throw line (67.9%).
The Highlanders rallied to within 52-50 by drawing fouls on drives to the basket. They made 9-of-10 free throws, five by Andrew Henderson, in a span of under four minutes. Henderson led the Highlanders with 17 points.
But Mahaney took charge down the stretch with a pull-up jumper, two runners and two free throws to help the Gauchos finish off the Highlanders with an 18-9 run.
Kitenge added a coast-to-coast layup after making a steal with two minutes to go.
Riverside was still within striking distance, 63-59, when Marqui Worthy made a pair of foul shots.
But Mahaney gave UCSB some separation by weaving his way through the key on a scoring drive with 44 seconds remaining.
“Honestly, it was a really good screen by Hosana to get me open,” he said. “I hope I can make a layup … I’ve been playing college basketball for years.
“I’ve struggled this year for sure, especially this last week, of finishing at the end of the games. It’s something I take personally.
“I came in on Monday — we had an off day on Monday — and I worked only on around the rim, working on my finishing. I’m glad I was able to finish the one that mattered at the end today.”
UCSB will next travel to UC Irvine (19-10, 12-5 Big West), which shares first place with Hawai’i (20-7, 12-5), for a 7:30 p.m. game on Saturday. The contest will be televised nationally by ESPN2.
The Gauchos hope to have starting point guard Miro Little back for the contest. He’s missed 13 games this season with foot and hand injuries.
“I can’t remember the last time Miro played,” Pasternack said. “But Miro got some great news from the doctor today, so we’re really excited about that.
“He’s going to practice tomorrow and we’ll see how it goes.”