Irvine Turns Over Game to New Mexico State

Soon enough, everyone’s eyes traveled to the same spot on the game box score and rested there.

Turnovers, UC Irvine: 33.

What other statistic in New Mexico State’s 77-60 Big West Conference victory over the Anteaters on Monday could mean much, after that?

“Oh my God, that’s so embarrassing,” Irvine’s Ricky Butler said.

New Mexico State Coach Neil McCarthy whistled when he saw it.

“Oh my goodness, 33?” he said. “That’s a lot.”

And Irvine Coach Bill Mulligan?

“You missed one,” he said. “Our radio guys had us with 34.”

Irvine, 7-13 overall and 2-6 in the conference, had 20 turnovers by halftime and trailed by 15 points, well on its way to its fourth loss in a row.

Gerald McDonald, Irvine’s point guard, had 11 turnovers and Jeff Herdman had five.

“I think the bottom line is that if you turn it over 33 times, you can’t play with New Mexico State,” Mulligan said. “I mean, that’s 33 times you don’t even get a shot.”

The 22nd-ranked Aggies (13-2, 5-1) easily recovered from Saturday’s upset at the hands of Cal State Fullerton, to the delight of 9,148 in the Pan American Center.

Reggie Jordan and substitute Ron Putzi had 15 points each and Randy Brown had seven points, 12 assists and three steals. The Aggies combined for 14 steals.

For Irvine, it was the sort of game in which you could feel a season unraveling.

“I’m getting real worried,” said Butler, who scored 15 points. “I’m trying to be positive.”

That is becoming more of a task. Irvine’s 60 points were a season-low, and Herdman had to carry most of the offensive load. He had 23 points and 12 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the season. In the first half, Irvine had only seven field goals, and four of them were three-pointers by Herdman.

“I was open, so I shot,” Herdman said. “Most of the guys were scared, or playing scared.”

Two of the starters were not playing at all by the second half. Mulligan benched guard Dylan Rigdon, who took one shot in the first half, and forward Jeff Von Lutzow, who did not return to the game after receiving a technical for arguing a charging call midway through the first half.

New Mexico State’s McCarthy praised his team’s trademark defense, but in the end, no one could quite get over the one statistic.

“I think most of it was casualness or inexperience,” Herdman said. “Even their press is not good enough to cause 20 turnovers in a half.”