Nov. 14, 2010

Final Stats

PORTLAND, Ore. - Senior Mark Payne scored his 1000th career point, after 17 points and five rebounds vs. Wisc.-Milwaukee, but UC Davis couldn't complete their comeback, falling 73-62 Sunday afternoon, at the Athletes in Action Classic in Portland, Ore.

For the third consecutive game, the Aggies fell victim to an early double-digit deficit and couldn't take back the lead. UC Davis had the Panther advantage down to six multiple times in the second half, but Milwaukee was able to hit some late free throws to secure the win.

Lonnie Boga poured in a team best 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Panters, after playing just 23 minutes due to a second half injury. Joe Harden led all scorers with 21 points, while adding 11 boards for a double-double.

Both teams had trouble finding the bottom of the net in the early minutes, but back-to-back threes from Ryan Sypkens and Ryan Howley gave UC Davis an 8-7 lead with 15:07 on the clock.

After five lead changes in the first five minutes, the Panthers rattled off a 14-4 run to go up 21-12 at the 9:52 mark. Despite another Howley three, Milwaukee continued to extend their lead, going up by double digits on a Boga old fashioned three point play, making the score 26-15.

The Aggies had the lead down to seven, but the Panthers came right back with another run to take a 37-25 advantage with just over four minutes remaining the first half.

UC Davis had a scoring drought in the final four minutes, scoring just one point in that time, before Payne's layup at the buzzer brought the score to 41-28 at the half.

Boga had a double-double at halftime, recording 12 points and 12 rebounds in the first 20 minutes.

Payne surpassed 1000 points early in the second half, hitting a three that made the score 45-33 with 17:24 on the clock.

After getting out in transition for some easy baskets, UC Davis managed a 6-0 run, capped off by a streaking Harden, who's layup made it a 53-43 score with 12:30 on the clock.

The Aggies started to apply full-court pressure, cutting the lead to single digits on multiple occasions. Two Payne free throws made the score 57-49, with 9:02 remaining in the game.

UC Davis continued to chip away at the lead, using a Howley back door layup to climb within six at the 5:42 mark. After trading baskets the score was 63-57, as the Panthers held the advantage with 4:45 left to play.

Despite surging to get back in the game, the Aggies were held scoreless for over three minutes and didn't score a field goal for over four minutes. Milwaukee hit just enough free throws in the final minutes to hold on for the final 73-62 win.

"I thought there was a critical part of the game where we got beat in every facet of the game," said head coach Gary Stewart. "You have to give credit to coach Jeter and his staff. They were aggressive and assertive in putting the ball into the interior. For about a six minute period, we didn't have a response for that and that changed the complexion of the game."

"We're 72 hours into the season, so it's early," continued coach Stewart. "We've got to integrate some young people and we certainly got a heavy dose of reality in relationship to where we are right now. But we've got some very team oriented people that will adhere to what's on the film and then address that accordingly."

Next up, UC Davis will play their home opener on Wednesday, Nov. 17th at 7 p.m. vs. UC Santa Cruz in the Pavilion.