Stewart Sparks UC Irvine’s Exhibition Basketball Victory

UC Irvine guard Keith Stewart scored 10 consecutive points late in the second half as the Anteaters pulled away for an 89-67 exhibition victory over the Lafayette Hustlers in front of 1,218 Monday at the Bren Center.

The Lafayette (Ind.) Hustlers, playing their eighth game in 10 days, won two games in a row before Monday, outlasting Loyola Marymount in overtime and defeating UC Santa Barbara. In its other game against a Southern California team, Lafayette lost to Pepperdine in double overtime.

Lafayette scored a three-point victory over Ohio State, and its previous largest margin of defeat was a 17-point loss to Purdue.

Jeff Von Lutzow led Irvine with 16 points. Stewart, who started Irvine’s final 10 games last season--his first at Irvine after transferring from Marquette--scored 14 points and was three for four from three-point range.

The Anteaters trailed by three at the half and were guarding a 10-point lead that had earlier dwindled to two when Stewart scored on two fast breaks and two three-point baskets to give them an 84-64 lead with 3:07 left.

Irvine point guard Lloyd Mumford, who was playing his first game as an Anteater since transferring from Villanova, had nine assists and scored 11 points, but made only two of nine shots.

Irvine Coach Rod Baker, whose team was 7-22 last season in his first year at the school, was guarded in his praise. Irvine shot 45% from the field, but pulled away when Lafayette shot only 21% in the second half.

UCI had 14 turnovers in the first half but only five in the second.

“We had a pretty good half, just not a very good whole,” Baker said. “We found out that even though we think we’re better, we’re still not good enough if we don’t play hard.”