Jan. 22, 2009

Final Stats

DAVIS, Calif. - UC Davis defeated UC Santa Barbara, 89-75, Thursday night in a Big West Conference men's basketball game at The Pavilion. The victory extended the Aggies' winning streak to three and moved them into sole possession of second place in the Big West with a 4-2 mark. UC Davis (9-10) led by a point with 11:30 remaining before going on a 21-7 run over the next eight minutes to pull away from UCSB (9-10, 2-4 Big West).

Vince Oliver led six Aggies in double figures with 21 points. Kyle Brucculeri came off the bench with 13, and Michael Boone added 12 points and eight rebounds. UCSB's Chris Devine led all scorers with 27 points to go along with eight rebounds.

UC Davis opened up a quick 11-4 lead four minutes into the game after a Dominic Calegari three-pointer at the 16:08 mark of the first half. The junior would finish the night with 12 points while going 3-for-4 from beyond the arc. UCSB closed within 14-12 before the Aggies went on an 8-2 run to push their lead to 25-16. Boone scored all eight points of the blitz, and capped off the run with a dunk with 9:37 left in the half.

The Gauchos later trailed 30-22 before going on a 7-0 run. A layup by Devine with 5:44 left in the half closed the gap to 30-29. UC Davis led 39-37 but upped the margin to 43-37 at the break after Oliver scored four points in the final minute of the half.

UC Davis opened the second half with a three-point play by Mark Payne, who finished with 10 points, to push the lead back to nine. The Gauchos responded with an 8-2 run and neither team led by more than five until the fateful run by UC Davis later in the half.

With the lead 61-60, the Aggies ran off nine straight points. The sequence started with jumpers by Brucculeri and Payne to make it 65-60. Brucculeri then made a three-pointer on the right wing, and Oliver pulled up for another jumper to give the Aggies a 70-60 lead at the 9:12 mark. Just over five minutes later, Calegari made his final three of the night to give the Aggies an 82-67 lead and their largest advantage of the night.

"We were consistent with our transition from start to finish," said UC Davis head coach Gary Stewart. "It was a collective effort, and we got a huge lift from Michael Boone. He had a significant game, and we needed every rebound and every point from him tonight."

David Carter was the other Aggie in double figures with 13 points, tying a season-high for the senior. Carter joined Calegari and Brucculeri with three treys on the night. UC Davis shot 11-for-21 from beyond the arc compared to UCSB's 1-for-9.

For the game, UC Davis continued is recent surge of hot shooting, finishing at 57 percent. It was the fourth straight game the Aggies shot better than 50 percent. UC Davis also outrebounded UC Santa Barbara, 36-27. Boone `s eight rebounds tied a career-high.

UC Davis is next in action Saturday night when it hosts Cal Poly at 7 p.m.