Anteaters at a Loss to Explain Collapse

Forward Adam Stetson shook his head, mustered his best Texas drawl and, even with all that effort, still couldn’t pinpoint the reason for UC Irvine’s woes Sunday.

The results were plain enough. The Anteaters were buried, 71-57, by James Madison in front of 1,006 in the Bren Center. They were out-rebounded, out-shot and out-hustled.

But why left the Irvine players a bit puzzled.

“I plead the fifth,” Stetson said. “I don’t know what happened. I wish I did. We knew James Madison was a get-it-and-go team. We fell into their game.”

What made it more bewildering for the Anteaters was the 18-point swing against them. They were leading, 27-22, with five minutes left in the first half. When they finally caught their breath, the Dukes led, 43-30, with 15 minutes left in the game.

“We didn’t take care of business the last three minutes [of the first half],” Coach Pat Douglass said.

This was not the follow-up Irvine had wanted from its last two games, a victory over Northern Arizona and a respectable showing against eighth-ranked Arizona. Nor was it the way the Anteaters wanted to roll into Tuesday night’s game against BYU.

The Dukes (6-3) had a 52-27 rebounding edge--17-8 in offensive rebounds. Irvine (2-5) shot 35% from the field, making only one of 17 shots during James Madison’s 21-3 run that turned the game around.

The Dukes’ Jabari Outtz and Eugene Atkinson led a 13-0 spurt to close the half, with Outtz sinking a three-pointer at the buzzer for a 35-27 halftime lead.

“A lot of people might say we’re young, but that’s no excuse for that kind of groove,” said freshman guard Zamiro Bennem, who had a season-high 16 points. “Maybe three games ago that was a reason. Not now. Not at home.

“We have to show up ready for practice [today]. I’m sure P.D. is going to yell at us. We know we can beat these teams, we just have to execute.”

Like sneakers, ear plugs might be an essential today. The Dukes are not exactly a smooth running operation. They did, after all, lose to Maryland. . . . Maryland Eastern Shore.

James Madison had five assists and 22 turnovers Sunday. The Anteaters also took away the three-point shot, a Duke staple. They made nine of 12 threes in their last game against Radford, but were two for 11 Sunday.

Denied outside, the Dukes went inside. Guard Jamar Perry had 13 points and 13 rebounds. Chatney Howard had 12 of his team-high 16 points in the second half. Both often scored on sharp cuts to the basket or off offensive rebounds.

“Coach told us to fight through it,” Bennem said. “I think a lot of us quit.”

The Anteaters’ played well the first 15 minutes. They moved the ball, got open shots and made them.

Stetson, who missed the first six games this season because of a torn tendon in his left foot, had eight of his 10 points in the first half. He sank a three-pointer for a 5-2 lead and later hit another to tie the score, 22-22. Stetson later re-injured his foot, but said it wasn’t serious.

A steal and layup by Gabe Cagwin and a Bennem three-pointer made it 27-22. James Madison then switched from a man defense to a 1-2-2 zone. Irvine missed five shots and turned the ball over three times in its last eight possessions.

“Once they went to the zone, we got tentative,’ Douglass said. “We had the open shots, we didn’t make them.”

Ben Jones would make a perfect poster boy for the effort. He had 25 points against Arizona last Monday, but missed his first seven shots. He finished three of 13 from the field and scored eight points.

Jones wasn’t alone. Jerry Green, Irvine’s second-leading scorer, was two for nine.