UC Irvine Dwarfs Millard, St. Mary’s With Team Effort

The physical presence Saturday night wasn’t St. Mary’s center Brad Millard. He was a physical specimen, as always, but the immovable object was UC Irvine, en masse.

While the 7-foot-3, 345-pound Millard had another strong game, it was the Anteaters who stood tall in a 67-59 victory in front of 2,658 in the Bren Center..

“We were just chopping the tree,” said guard Jerry Green, who scored 25 points.

Green had eight points in the final 52 seconds, including six on foul shots, as Irvine made 19 of 23 free throws. He also had seven points and an assist in a 9-0 run that gave Irvine a 51-49 lead with seven minutes left.

The Anteater defense took it from there. The Gaels (2-3) had only one field goal in the last seven minutes. Zamiro Bennem blocked four shots, two in a five-second span, and had three steals.

Irvine (3-2) outscored St. Mary’s, 25-10, in the last 10 minutes.

“A year ago, that might have been typical Irvine, losing the game in the last four or five minutes,” said Bennem, a 6-4 sophomore. “This year, we’ve learned to fight through that. We already have half as many wins as we did all last season.”

This one didn’t come easy, not with Millard lurking. With at least five NBA scouts watching, he had 22 points and eight rebounds.

“You see the guy on TV and you hear about him,” said Irvine forward Marek Ondera, who had 18 points and six rebounds. “Then you stand next to him on the foul line and you feel like a miniature.”

Said Green: “The guy is a truck. I’m just a Yugo.”

Green, though, was able to rev it up while Millard ran out of gas. The Gael center went scoreless in the last six minutes, missing two shots and a free throw. Nor was his presence on defense oppressive. He came in averaging five blocks, but had none Saturday.

Ondera, meanwhile, made six of 11 shots, including three dunks, and scored 18 points. He also blocked two shots.

“You’re always aware of [Millard],” Irvine Coach Pat Douglass said. “You can’t shoot over him. We just tried to do things to take him away from the basket.”

St. Mary’s jumped out to a 17-7 lead and led throughout the first half. Irvine, though, closed the half with a flurry.

With Irvine trailing, 31-24, J.R. Christ hit a 15-foot jumper over Millard. Christ then blocked a Jovan Harris shot and Green fed Ondera for a dunk on the other end. Bennem picked off a pass and scored and Irvine was within one.

Millard slowed the Anteaters a bit by snatching a rebound and dunking, with Christ draped on his back. But Green’s two free throws made it 33-32 at halftime.

The Anteaters were able to slow Millard, who made seven of 12 shots, with double- and triple-team defense. He didn’t receive much help.

Frank Allocco scored 15 points, but was having difficulty getting good looks at the basket because of Bennem’s defense. At one point during Irvine’s second-half run, Allocco had a shot blocked by Bennem. Allocco grabbed the ball and shot again, only to have Bennem get a piece of it.