UCI Scores Only 25 in 2nd-Half Swoon : Basketball: Anteaters, who led most of first half, end up losing to Tennessee Chattanooga, 88-68.

For one half, UC Irvine appeared ready to steal the Dr. Pepper Classic from Tennessee Chattanooga.

The Anteaters then hit hard times in the second half.

Tennessee Chattanooga held Irvine to 25 second-half points and beat the Anteaters, 88-68, Saturday night in the tournament championship before 5,129 in the Roundhouse.

The score was tied, 43-43, at halftime, and Irvine trailed by two with nine minutes left.

“The first half we played very well,” Irvine Coach Bill Mulligan said. “We had some foul problems but we played very well.

“The second half we were completely dominated by a team that played outstanding against us. UTC played well in the second half and deserved to win.”

The Anteaters (5-7), who begin Big West play Wednesday night at Utah State, beat Alabama State, 102-98, in the first round.

“I guess we’re 0-0 now,” said Jeff Herdman, who led the Anteaters with 16 points and was selected to the all-tournament team. “Now we’ve got to worry about our league. This was all practice.”

Tennessee Chattanooga (6-5) won its second and only game against Irvine. The Moccasins beat the Anteaters, 74-72, last year in the championship game of the Disneyland Freedom Bowl Classic.

The Moccasins’ Keith Nelson had 32 points and 10 rebounds in Saturday’s victory and was selected the tournament’s MVP.

“It was a game that everybody had to play well, and everybody did,” Tennessee Chattanooga Coach Mack McCarthy said.

For Irvine, Cornelius Banks finished with 12 points, 10 in the first half, and Dylan Rigdon had 11.

Craig Marshall and Gerald McDonald each added nine points, but senior center Ricky Butler was held to eight points, 11 below his average.

“It was a real physical game in there (inside),” said Butler, who had 12 rebounds. “Once I got the ball, everybody dropped in on me.”

The Anteaters led most of the first half, scoring the first five points and twice leading by five.

Tennessee Chattanooga came back and tied the score at 40 with 2:12 left in the first half, then took a 43-40 lead on three of four free throws by Nelson. Irvine then tied it before halftime on Banks’ three-point play with 1:01 left.

Irvine shot 50% (16 of 32) in the first half and made seven of 13 three-point shots. Herdman made four of eight three-point shots in the first half, Rigdon was two of three and Banks one of two.

In the second half, the Anteaters made nine of 28 shots (32%) and one of 10 three-point shots.

Tennessee Chattanooga opened the second half with an 11-3 run and led, 54-46, but Butler scored on a dunk and two baskets by McDonald cut the lead to 54-52 with 13 minutes left.

With 9:24 left, Butler picked up his fourth foul and sat down after Marshall’s layup cut the lead to 60-58 with 9:02 remaining.

Butler was out for 3:28, during which Tennessee Chattanooga went ahead, 70-61.

In the final nine minutes of the game, Tennessee Chattanooga outscored Irvine, 28-10, with Nelson scoring 14 points and Kirce eight.

“We turned the ball over too much in the second half,” Herdman said. “We didn’t get that many shots off.”