Close Is Getting UC Irvine Nowhere : College basketball: Anteaters fall to Pacific, 68-62, for eighth loss in a row. Seven have been by five or fewer points.

UC Irvine, a team on its way from being labeled as underachieving to plain bad, lost its eighth consecutive game Thursday night, falling to Pacific, 68-62, before a season-low crowd of 1,890 in Irvine’s Bren Center.

The Anteaters are 2-11 and winless in the Big West Conference. Four of their losses are to top 25 teams and seven were by five or fewer points. But losing the close games time after time eventually ceases to be a commendation.

Pacific (9-7 overall, 5-3 in the Big West) led by as many as 13 points in the second half, taking advantage of three consecutive turnovers by Irvine point guard Lloyd Mumford. Guard Tony Amundsen scored 18 points for the Tigers.

Irvine kept making short runs, cutting the deficit to six or so, then watching it balloon again.

It was 10 points with 2:38 to play when Jeff Von Lutzow, fouled on a shot beyond the three-point line, made all three free throws to cut it to seven.

Pacific entered a horrid stretch in which it missed nine consecutive free throws, and Irvine cut the lead to three, 59-56, on Keith Stewart’s three-pointer with 1:21 to play. Stewart led Irvine with 18 points.

Irvine never got closer, partly because Elzie Love, a 68% free-throw shooter, returned Pacific’s favor, missing three free throws in a row in the final minute.

“They missed free throws, then we felt hospitable and missed some ourselves,” Irvine Coach Rod Baker said. “We got it to the situation where it was right there. If we could have capitalized on it, we’d have been all right.”

Only Love’s three-pointer with 3.2 seconds to play made the final margin six.

Oddly, the Anteaters started as though they might win one, opening a 7-0 lead. But Pacific scored the next 13 points, Irvine didn’t score at all for 7 minutes 27 seconds, and the Tigers held a 14-point lead.

Irvine trailed by 10 at halftime, 40-30, despite shooting 56% in the first 20 minutes.

The problem was that the Anteaters attempted only 18 shots. Irvine had 11 turnovers in the first half, 20 in the game.

Pacific owed its lead to trying 32 shots and shooting 53%.

The Anteaters continue to be hampered by poor play by center Dee Boyer, who attempted only one shot.