UC Irvine’s Losing Streak Reaches 11 Games

UC Irvine took its 10-game losing streak into a game Saturday night against a team that had won only once all season.

But the losing streak reached 11 as San Jose State beat the Anteaters, 58-52, to relegate them to last place in the Big West Conference.

Irvine blew a five-point halftime lead and later missed five of six free throws down the stretch as it tried to catch up.

Elgin Rogers had a chance to cut the lead to two points after being fouled with 1:12 remaining, but he missed both free throws.

Irvine (3-16, 0-10) led by as many as eight points in the first half after forcing three consecutive turnovers with full-court pressure. But San Jose State (2-15, 1-8) erased Irvine’s 34-29 halftime lead in the first two minutes of the second half as Jason Allen hit a short jumper and back-to-back three-pointers to put the Spartans up by two. Allen led all scorers with 16.

The Anteaters were outrebounded, 42-28, by a team that ranks last in the conference in that category, and shot 28.3%--making 13 field goals in 46 attempts--against a team whose opponents average 49.4%.