Anteaters Hope to Continue on Successful Path
This is not a parallel universe. UC Irvine does have a winning record heading into Thursday’s Big West Conference opener at Nevada.
The last time the Anteaters had it so good in men’s basketball was 1982-83, when they were 7-3 heading into conference play.
So Irvine seems poised on the brink of something good--compared to recent seasons--in a conference where the quality comes in mono while the other conferences on the West Coast play in surround sound.
The top teams are easy to spot.
New Mexico State (9-3), where Coach Lou Henson has done more in the past, has been the conference’s most consistent team. Long Beach State’s talent seems to be finally showing through. Utah State (9-4) has been gritty.
After that? It gets a little thin. So much so that Cal State Fullerton (5-6) stands a good chance at being one of the four teams from the West Division to reach the conference tournament.
Where does that leave the Anteaters? Second place in the West Division? Hey, it could happen. Maybe.
They have never finished higher than fourth since the conference went to divisional play in 1996-97, and have finished last three times. In eight seasons before that, Irvine finished higher than eighth in a 10-team conference only once.
So 7-4 leaves the handful of Anteater fans with dizzy thoughts. Even their coach is expecting to climb the wobbly Big West ladder.
“You talked to people before the season and they all had us finishing last in the conference,” Pat Douglass said. “I don’t think we’re going to do that.”
It would take some doing. Cal Poly Can Luis Obispo (5-7) has struggled. UC Santa Barbara (4-7) has labored. Pacific (4-7) has been inconsistent. Long Beach (8-3) has won six consecutive games, but has self-destructed before.
A last-place finish for Irvine would take a major collapse. Of course, the Anteaters did lose 14 consecutive conference games last season. But that was last season.
“There is a big difference with this team,” said junior forward Ben Jones, who has been at Irvine for every step since the 1-25 debacle in 1996-97. “Obviously we’re playing better than we ever have since I came here. Our record is better. Guys are having fun.”
That comes from beating teams you’re supposed to beat--and beating Division II teams like a Division I team should.
Not that it can’t all come crashing down. Irvine had nice victories over St. Mary’s and St. Francis, but there are no saints in the Big West--well, Santa Barbara.
Irvine also showed a lack of staying power in losses to Oklahoma, California and BYU.
“We have played some quality basketball, but we need to sustain it longer,” Douglass said. “You get into conference, you need contributions off the bench. You can’t just send your five guys out there every game.”
Irvine’s starters are solid, especially on the perimeter, where Jerry Green, Sean Jackson and Zamiro Bennem pose real matchup problems. Forward Marek Ondera is too quick for big players and is too strong inside for smaller players.
When the others are on their game--center J.R. Christ topping that list--Irvine is difficult to match up against.
TITAN TURNAROUND
Fullerton started the season with four consecutive losses, but has won five of its last seven games and is a factor in the West Division.
Fullerton had a chance to finish the nonconference portion of its schedule with a winning record, but a 78-72 loss to San Diego Saturday night left the Titans at 5-6 and ended their four-game winning streak.
Coach Bob Hawking, however, said he has been encouraged by the team’s recent improvement.
“We’ve had some adversity, but we’ve grown a lot in the last six weeks,” Hawking said. “We’re a much better club now than we were when we played San Diego earlier.”
The Titans lost to the Toreros, 81-77, at Fullerton in their second game of the season, but have won their last four home games.
Center Matt Caldwell, the Titans’ second-leading scorer with a 12.7-point average, had surgery on his injured right shoulder Tuesday and will be sidelined the rest of the season. That has moved sophomore Josh Fischer into the starting lineup, and left the Titans with less depth inside.
Rebounding has been Fullerton’s big problem. The Titans have been outrebounded in eight games this season, but have shot well and played solid defense recently. Their 42.4% shooting against San Diego was their worst in the last five games.
STILL GOING
The Vanguard women’s basketball team ran its home winning streak to 45 last week, despite missing two starters with injury.
Forward Robin Dittenbir suffered a knee injury two weeks ago and is out indefinitely, and forward Rachel Fikse was diagnosed with a stress fracture in her foot and will be reevaluated this week.
Vanguard, ranked 10th in NAIA Division I, will try to increase its Golden State Athletic Conference record to 4-0 when it travels to Point Loma Nazarene Tuesday.
