Fullerton Kicks Irvine Out of PCAA Tourney

UC Irvine Coach Bill Mulligan would have you believe that it’s just another game when his team meets Cal State Fullerton. So would George McQuarn, his Titan counterpart.

Both claim to be of the opinion that any strong sense of rivalry is a figment of the media’s imagination. Of course, these are the same men who waged a little battle of words over whether McQuarn really did burn the videotape of Irvine’s victory on the Titans’ homecourt earlier this season, as he claimed to have done.

It’s likely that McQuarn will save and savor the tapes of Thursday night’s game. Henry Turner had a career-high 26 points, and Derek Jones had a career-high 22 points to lead Fullerton to a 92-81 victory before an announced crowd of 11,338 at the Forum in the first round of the PCAA tournament.

Fullerton (17-12) will meet top-ranked Nevada Las Vegas in the semifinals tonight at 7. Irvine concluded its season at 14-14.

This marks the third straight season Fullerton has knocked Irvine out of this tournament, and the victory made up for the Titans’ two regular-season defeats by the Anteaters.

“The media has made a rivalry out of this ballgame,” McQuarn said. “I personally don’t feel that way, and from what I’ve read in the papers, Mulligan doesn’t feel that way, either.”

Rivalry or not, there’s no denying that the Titans--who at times seem to need a reason to play their best--were ready to play. They had 17 offensive rebounds to Irvine’s 4, which led to a 40-25 advantage on the boards. They shot 51% and made 24 of 28 free throws, including 10 of 12 in the final 2 1/2 minutes, when the Anteaters were trying to three-point their way back into the game.

“It was our best effort in a long, long, long time,” McQuarn said.

At the heart of it were two players who missed all or part of Irvine’s 78-69 overtime win over the Titans Feb. 14 at Bren Center. Jones watched that game from the bench, his left arm in a sling, after suffering a dislocated shoulder two days before at Las Vegas. Turner left in the arms of Fullerton trainers, after suffering a severely sprained right ankle with five minutes to play.

Both were given another chance to face Irvine through the luck of the PCAA draw. Together, they accounted for more than half of Fullerton’s scoring, 18 rebounds and made 19 of 26 shots from the floor.

All of this was a bit too much for Irvine to overcome, despite 29 points by senior guard Scott Brooks and a late Anteater rally. Irvine cut Fullerton’s lead to 82-78 with 2:10 to play on a Brooks three-pointer, but the Titans held on from the foul line. The 24 free throws represent the most Fullerton has made in a game this season.