‘Eaters’ best in class
They came from England, Greece, Senegal and some place called Sunland (Calif.). When the last of them walk off the collegiate basketball floor for the final time in the coming weeks, they will forever be known around UC Irvine as The Class.
Senior guards Luke Nelson and Jaron Martin, the Big West Conference Player of the Year and the walk-on-to-first-team-all-conference comet, respectively, as well as polished 7-foot-2 post Ioannis Dimakopoulos, have done nothing but win Big West championships as Anteaters.
Mamadou Ndiaye, a 7-6 cult hero, left after his junior year with an eye on a professional future. But not before advancing the collective cause and lifting the profile, not to mention eye level, of Coach Russell Turner’s program.
Together, Nelson, Martin and Dimakopoulos, a second-team all-conference choice this season, claimed outright conference regular-season titles in 2014 and 2017, a co-championship in 2016, and Big West Tournament crown in 2015, which made them the first UCI team to make the Division I NCAA Tournament.
Come to Irvine. Get a UC education. Cut down some nets. Throw up a couple banners. Heck, even Dance.
The recruiting sell will never again be as difficult for Turner, or his successors, thanks in no small measure to this soft-spoken, yet talented trio.
“Those guys will get to walk around with that for as long as they walk around,” Turner pronounced after UCI punked UC Davis, 79-49, to cap a conference regular-season run in which its 12 wins came by an average of 18 points.
When starters Nelson, Ndiaye and then-developing Martin and Dimakopoulos took the floor in November, 2013 for a season-opening overtime loss to Fresno State, they rounded out what, for the first time, was a roster exclusively of Turner-recruited players.
The run continues when the top-seeded ‘Eaters (19-13, on the verge of the program’s fifth-straight 20-win season) face No. 8-seeded UC Riverside (7-20) in a Big West Tournament quarterfinal on Thursday at 6 p.m. at Honda Center.
Enjoy them while you can. And always recognize their contribution.
Courtside envy
During Monday’s pre-tournament conference call with Big West coaches, UC Davis’ Jim Les said UCI’s unprecedented recent Big West title haul is something to be revered.
“Well, it takes a village, no doubt,” Les said of the ‘Eaters ascension, “from upper-level administration, on down. It takes a great vision. It takes a lot of people pulling in the right direction. The success that Irvine has had is a direct result to that administrative philosophy. Russ has a great vision and a lot of people working really hard. He has a really great staff. It’s been exciting to watch that grow and from the time we got here in Davis, we’ve been trying to emulate that same philosophy, where we’ve gotten really good support from above and just tried to continue to grow our program, to keep up with the likes of Irvine and Long Beach, who have done such a great job in our league over the years.”
No complacency here
Nelson, a two-time first-team All-Big West performer, the 2014 Big West Freshman of the Year, and a two-time All-Big West Tournament honoree, isn’t about to celebrate any legacy just yet.
“A lot of people around our team have told us ‘Good job,’” Nelson said. “But I don’t want to listen to that too much, now, because I still don’t think we’ve done anything yet [this season]. All we’ve done is put a target on our back, by being the best team in the conference. And now it’s ours to lose. Now, coach said, we have to validate that we are the best team. And the only way to do that is to win three games in three days, but one game at a time. That’s all I think about.”
Horned Frogs visit
Winning three games in three days will be even more difficult for the UCI baseball team than the ‘Eaters’ men’s basketball squad this weekend.
No. 1-ranked TCU (11-1) visits for a three-game series beginning Friday at 6:30 p.m.
The Horned Frogs have a scout-pleasing pitching staff that includes 6-6 freshman lefty Nick Lodolo, 6-7, 255-pound senior Mitchell Traver, and 6-9 senior Brian Howard.
A TCU offense averaging eight runs a game and has hit 14 home runs, is led by Luken Baker, who is hitting .385 with four homers and 12 runs batted in.
UCI (7-4), batting .318 as a team, has an inflated team earned-run average of 6.42. Teams are hitting .320 against the ‘Eaters.
Senior center fielder Evan Cassolato (.512 with 21 hits) and heralded junior designated hitter Keston Hiura (.452 with nine doubles, four homers and 17 RBIs) are leading the UCI offense.
Coaching ‘em up
A pair of Vanguard University products are enjoying postseason success as head coaches.
Lisa Faulkner, who began her career at UCI and went on to share 2005 NAIA Player of the Year as a point guard for the Vanguard women’s program, has guided Point Loma Nazarene (24-5) to a No. 7 seed in the NCAA Division II West Regional in her first season at the helm.
The Sea Lions, who lost to Cal Baptist in the PacWest Tournament final on Saturday, play the No. 2-seeded Lancers (31-2) for the fourth time this season on Friday in Anchorage, Alaska.
Former Vanguard men’s player Boomer Roberts, who was an assistant coach for the women’s and men’s programs at the school, has helped Trinity International (near Chicago) to a school-record 29 wins in his third season.
The Trojans (29-5 after a 77-55 win over College of the Ozarks to open the NAIA Division II Tournament in Missouri), meet Taylor of Indiana in the second round Friday.
Scull session
The 52nd annual Newport Regatta, hosted by Orange Coast College crew, is Sunday in Newport Beach.
The field, including OCC, UCI, USC, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, Long Beach State, San Diego State, San Diego and Chapman, begins racing at 7:45 a.m. near the David A. Grant Collegiate Rowing Center on Pacific Coast Highway.
Twitter: @BarryFaulkner5
