Jan. 10, 2011

Complete Game Notes

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UC DAVIS MEN'S BASKETBALL GAME NOTES
UC Davis (6-10, 1-3)
at
Long Beach State (9-8, 4-0)

Wednesday, January 12, 2011
8:00 p.m. (PST) - Long Beach, Calif.
Walter Pyramid (4,200)
KFSG (1690 AM)
ESPNU

OPENING TIPS
- UC Davis is on a three game losing streak, after two losses at home in conference play. It's the second three game losing streak on the season, after the Aggies dropped the first three games of the season.
- In their most game, UC Davis lost 48-43 to Cal Poly at home. The Aggies had a season low in points scored as a team and shooting percentage (31.4%).
- Eddie Miller had a team best 15 points on 7 of 15 shooting vs. the Mustangs. Miller has led the team in scoring for the past two games and four out of the last five contests.
- Mark Payne did not play last week, after suffering an ankle injury at the end of the Cal State Northridge game. Todd Lowenthal was also out due to injury for the eighth consecutive game.
- Long Beach State comes into the contest with a 9-8 overall record and a perfect 4-0 mark in conference play.
- The 49ers were on a four game skid heading into conference play, before rattling off four consecutive Big West wins.
- Long Beach State is 4-2 at home this season, with recent wins over Cal State Northridge and UC Irvine
- Long Beach State has five players averaging double figures, with Casper Ware and T.J. Robinson both averaging 14.8 points per game.
- Casper Ware leads the conference with 6.0 assists per game and the 49ers lead the Big West in team assist with 14.82 per contest.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Wednesday's game will mark the 13th meeting between Long Beach State and UC Davis, with the 49ers holding a 10-2 advantage in the all-time series. Last season, Long Beach State took both games over the Aggies, winning 68-65 in their most recent meeting, which was a home game for UC Davis.

HEAD COACHES
Gary Stewart is in his 18th year as a head coach and his 8th season with the Aggies. He currently owns a 226-257 overall record and a 84-138 mark on the sidelines with UC Davis. Stewart was with the Aggies during all four years of the transition to Division I and is set to lead the program into their fourth year as a D1 member.

Dan Monson holds a 47-64 record in his fourth season with the 49ers and a 217-187 overall record in over 13 seasons as a head coach. Prior to his arrival at Long Beach State, Monson was the head coach at the University of Minnesota for seven-plus years, compiling a 118-105 mark and reaching postseason play in five of his seven seasons. Prior to accepting the Minnesota job on July 24, 1999, Monson was the head coach at Gonzaga for two years. In 1998-99 he led the Bulldogs to within a breath of the Final Four. Gonzaga, which went 28-7 on the year and won the West Coast Conference regular season and tournament championships, defeated such notable NCAA powers as Minnesota (75-63), Stanford (82-74) and Florida (73-72) before bowing out to eventual national-champion Connecticut (67-62) in the Elite Eight.

LONG BEACH STATE SCOUTING REPORT
The 49ers enter Wednesday's contest with a 9-8 overall record and 4-0 mark in conference play, having recently taken a 86-78 win vs. UC Irvine. Long Beach State started the Big West season with a 71-55 win at UC Santa Barbara, followed by wins at Cal Poly and at home vs. Cal State Northridge. The 49ers played a competitive nonconference schedule against the likes of San Diego State, Clemson, Iowa, Washington, North Carolina and Arizona State. Long Beach State has all five starters averaging in double figures, with Casper Ware, T.J. Robinson and Larry Anderson all averaging over 14 points per game. Ware is leading the conference in assists per game with 6.0, while the team also leads the conference in assists per game. Robinson is averaging 10.2 rebounds per game and is one of two players in the Big West that is averaging a double double.

MEDIA COVERAGE
Wednesday's contest will air on KFSG (1690 AM) with Scott Marsh on play-by-play. The broadcast will be simulcast on ucdavisaggies.com through Game Central by Stretch Internet. The game will be streamed live and available to watch at bigwest.org. Live stat are available via ucdavisaggies.com. The game will also be nationally televised on ESPNU with Todd Harris and Miles Simon on the call. Wednesday's contest marks the second of four television games for the Aggies this season.

LAST TIME OUT
UC Davis dropped their third consecutive conference game and their second straight at home, with a 48-43 loss vs. Cal Poly. The Aggies scored a season low 43 points, while shooting just 31 percent from the floor, en route to the loss. UC Davis led the Big West in three point field goals coming into the game, hitting 7.78 per contest. The Aggies shot just 3 of 18 from behind the arc for 17 percent and 16 of 51 from the floor for the game. Cal Poly entered the game ranked fourth in the nation in three point field goal defense and managed another strong defensive effort vs. UC Davis. The Mustangs also out rebounded the Aggies 42-36, while collecting 15 offensive boards. Cal Poly was led by Will Donahue, who recorded a double double with 10 points and 12 rebounds, before fouling out with 1:56 remaining in the game. Shawn Lewis reached double figures with 11 points, while Maliik Love added nine. Eddie Miller tallied a game high 15 points to go along with 8 rebounds to lead UC Davis. Joe Harden also reached double figures , tallying 13 points and nine boards. Ryan Howley was the only other Aggie to record multiple field goals, scoring seven points off the bench on 3 of 4 shooting.

SHOOTING WOES VS. THE MUSTANGS
UC Davis had their worst shooting night of the season in a loss vs. Cal Poly, posting season lows in points (43), shooting percentage (31.4%), field goals made (16) and three point field goals made (3). Only three players registered multiple field goals in the game; Eddie Miller, Joe Harden and Ryan Howley. The rest of the team shot a combined 2-22 for the game. The Mustangs didn't shoot the ball much better, posting at a 32.7 percent clip for the game. However, Cal Poly had the advantage in rebounds (42-36), assists (10-6), steals (8-4) and turnovers (12-16). The Mustangs also managed to score 18 points off turnovers and 12 second chance points.

CONFERENCE LEADERS
Despite the offensive struggles in the past two games, UC Davis still leads the Big West in three point FGs made per game with 7.87 per contest. Prior to Saturday's game, the Aggies also led the conference in assists and field goal percentage, but have fallen to second (14.44 assists/game) and third (45.5 percent) in the conference. UC Davis is still third in both free throw percentage (.724) and three point FG percentage (.363). Ryan Sypkens leads the conference in three point FG percentage (.461), with the next closest player shooting just 43 percent. Eddie Miller is also ranked sixth in overall field goal percentage, shooting better than 48 percent on the season.

THREE POINT THREATS
UC Davis has proved that they can consistently knock down the long ball this season. They currently lead the Big West in three point FGs made per game, connecting on 7.87 per contest as a team. In a stretch of seven games from Dec. 4 - Jan 6, the Aggies hit eight or more threes in each game. UC Davis reached double figures in three point FGs made for the second time this season, when they poured in 13 triples in a win at Cal State Fullerton. The Aggies have six players that have recorded multiple threes in at least two games this season. Even more impressive is that the list of six players (Eddie Miller, Ryan Sypkens, Josh Ritchart, Ryan Howley, Ryan Silva, Tyler Les) does not include the top two scoring threats for UC Davis (Joe Harden and Mark Payne).

BACK-TO-BACK FOR SYPKENS
Ryan Sypkens responded well to being placed back in the starting lineup for conference play, posting career highs in back-to-back games. Sypkens shot 6 of 12 for a career high 17 points in a win over Cal State Fullerton, while adding five assists and three rebounds. He followed that performance with a new career high 19 points vs. Cal State Northridge, shooting 6 of 10 from the field and 5 of 7 from behind the arc. The five three point FGs made also set a new career high, while five rebounds in the game tied a career best.

MULTIPLE SEASON BESTS VS. THE MATADORS
UC Davis set multiple team and individual season highs in a win at Cal State Fullerton. The Aggies poured in a season high 88 points, while connecting on 13 threes. It was the second time this season that UC Davis had 10 or more threes in a game, after hitting on 15 triples against Notre Dame de Namur. The Aggies also had a season high with 30 field goals made as a team, shooting 50 percent for the game. Eddie Miller matched a career best for the third time on the season with 20 points. Josh Ritchart also reached 20 points for the second time on the season. Ryan Sypkens tallied a career high 17 points, to go along with 5 assists.

MILLER MATCHES A CAREER BEST
In his first season with the Aggies, junior transfer Eddie Miller has registered 20 points in multiple games this season. His first 20-point performance came in a win vs. Seattle back on Nov. 27. Miller also led UC Davis to a win over Southern Utah with 20 more points, after shooting 9 of 14 from the floor.

SYPKENS' HOT SHOOTING FROM THREE
Sophomore guard Ryan Sypkens came off the bench to net 16 points vs. Southern Utah, shooting an efficient 6 of 7 from the floor and 4 of 4 from behind the arc. The game marked the second time this season that Sypkens has tallied 16 points off the bench, while connecting on four threes. He also poured in 16 points in a win at Sacramento State, shooting 6 of 8 from the floor and 4 of 6 from long range. Sypkens leads the team in three point field goals made on the season.

BATTLING WITH THE BISON
For the past two seasons, UC Davis has had some memorable matchups vs. the North Dakota State Bison, in the only two meetings in school history. While the Bison have come away with both wins, the combined margin of victory was six over the two games. In the first ever meeting, NDSU took a 63-62 win on the Aggies' home court, back on Nov. 29, 2009. This season, UC Davis came up just short again, taking the game down to the wire before a 76-71 defeat.

TESTING THE PAC-10
Despite two losses vs. Pac-10 teams this season, UC Davis had potential for upsets against Cal and UCLA earlier this season. The Aggies dropped a 74-62 decision at Cal and lost 72-67 at UCLA. In the second half vs. the Golden Bears, UC Davis had just a six point deficit and trailed by only four late in the game vs. the Bruins. The Aggies have also had some strong individual performances in both games. Joe Harden had a career high 27 points against Cal, while Josh Ritchart poured in career high 23 points at UCLA.

RITCHART RISING
Josh Ritchart had one of the more impressive performances of the season for UC Davis, when he scored 23 points off the bench at UCLA on Dec. 13. After going a perfect 3 for 3 in the first half, 16 of Ritchart's 23 points came in the second half, including four threes. He had a stretch late in the game where he hit three consecutive threes, to pull the Aggies within six, the smallest deficit of the second half.

ON TOP OF ASSISTS
UC Davis had a season high 20 assists in their win vs. Notre Dame de Namur, while also recording a season low 10 turnovers. In the Week 5 Big West Conference Report, the Aggies climbed to the top of the leaderboard in team assists, with 15.1 per game. The next closest league foe is Long Beach State, with 14.1 game. Senior Mark Payne is a big reason why UC Davis is finding ways to effectively share the ball. Payne moved into sole possession of second place for career assists at UC Davis after the win vs. the Argonauts, with a total of 383 assists.

LES IS MORE
Freshman Tyler Les sparked an onslaught of threes vs. Notre Dame de Namur, coming off the bench to hit a team best four triples, while UC Davis hit 15 from long range for the game. The 15 three point field goals set a new program record for threes made in regulation, surpassing the previous mark of 14. Eddie Miller and Ryan Sypkens also had three threes apiece, while the Aggies shot 15-30 as a team.

HARDEN'S SCORING HEIGHTS
Senior Joe Harden has lived up to his preseason All-Conference selection, leading the Aggies in scoring and rebounding this season. Harden scored his 1000th career point vs. Seattle, followed by a career high 27 points in the next game vs. California. Even more impressive is that he has reached the 1000 point milestone in just three seasons with UC Davis, after transferring from Notre Dame. Harden is one of just five Aggies in history to reach 1000 career points in three seasons. He is currently on pace to be the all-time leading scorer among three year players. John Frost (1965-68) leads the group with 1,346 career points.

SHOTS FROM THE HEART
Head coach Gary Stewart and assistant coach Kevin Nosek are participating in collegeinsider.com's "Shots From the Heart." The objective of Shots From the Heart is to help create more awareness for the growing problem of Heart Disease and to raise money to benefit the American Heart Association during the 2010-11 season. The event will also play tribute to the late Skip Prosser who passed away on July 26, 2007 of a heart attack. To do this, college basketball coaches have been competing against one another in a free throw shooting tournament. The tournaments started in November with separate brackets for head and assistant coaches and the winners advancing to the next round.

Both coaches for the Aggies advanced in the first round. Coach Stewart downed John Beilein from Michigan in the first round, 27-25, while coach Nosek took a win over Kurtis Townsend of Kansas, 29-24. In the second round matchup coach Stewart got past Mike Londergan of Vermont, 26-21, while coach Nosek was eliminated by Alvin Brooks III of Sam Houston State on a tie breaker, after a 29-29 score. Coach Stewart will face Buzz Peterson of UNC Wilmington in the sweet sixteen.

CHECK THAT... (PART II)
Another stat correction this season ended up providing another noteworthy accomplishment. In the Nov. 27 game vs. Seattle, freshman Mike Kurtz was originally credited with four blocks. It was later revealed that Kurtz should have had five blocks. The five blocks for Kurtz ties a single game UC Davis record. Kurts now shares the record with Jason Cox (vs. St. Rose (N.Y.), 3/19/98) and Randy DeBortoli (vs. Cal State Hayward, 2/6/88).

LOWENTHAL IN THE NCAA RANKS
With the first NCAA statistical rankings posted on Monday, Nov. 29th, Todd Lowenthal was the only player for the Aggies that received an individual ranking in the top 100. At the time, Lowenthal led the team in assists and steals and was among the nation's best with 2.3 steals per game (57th) and a 2.36 assist to turnover ratio (85th). The next highest ranking for UC Davis was Mark Payne, who was shooting 82.2 percent from the free-throw line (182nd). As a team, the Aggies were ranked 93rd in free-throw percentage, shooting 71.1 percent.

Q&A WITH STEWART AND PAYNE
In the Nov. 29, 2010 issue of ESPN the Magazine, there is an article on page 64 about "hybrid players." Senior guard Mark Payne (6-8, 215 lbs.) was originally interviewed to be included in the article, with head coach Gary Stewart also commenting on Payne's status as a hybrid player. The Payne section was eventually left out of the final article, but the Q&A session with Payne and Stewart is available online to read. Visit ucdavisaggies.com and check out the "around the web" section to access a link to the conversations.

UC RIVERSIDE HOME GAME TO BE TELEVISED
UC Davis has picked up a televised game this season at home vs. UC Riverside on January 27th, with a tip time set for 7 p.m. The recently added game will air on Comcast California. The Aggies play in four televised games this season, but the Jan. 27th tilt will be the only home contest televised for UC Davis.

CAUSEWAY CUP CONTINUES
UC Davis jumped ahead in the Causeway Cup standings after a dramatic 17-16 win in the football Causeway Classic on Saturday, Nov. 20. The Causeway Cup awards points to either UC Davis or Sacramento State. Each of the schools' 18 common teams usually compete against each other at least once during the year. The winner is given the pre-determined amount of points of either five or 10. If the two schools meet just once in a season, then all the points will go to the winning team. But if the teams play each other two times or more, the points are divided by how many meetings occur. A men's basketball win just three days after football gave the Aggies a commanding 37.5 - 15.0 lead in the 2010-11 Causeway Cup standings. The winner of the cup must score more than 50 points out of a possible 100. Last year, UC Davis took a 55.83 - 44.17 victory over Sacramento State.

CHECK THAT...
After checking the stats from previous games, an interesting correction has been made to the first game of the season vs. Florida Atlantic. In that game, Mark Payne was originally credited with 13 free throws on 13 attempts. After the error was revealed, Payne was 14 of 14 at the line vs. FAU. Not only did the correction give Payne a 20-10 game, but the 14 free throws made ties a career high for the senior guard.

AGGIES INK JT ADENRELE
The UC Davis men's basketball team announced Wednesday, Nov. 17 that JT Adenrele from Oakmont High School in Roseville, has signed a National Letter of Intent and will join the Aggies next fall. Adenrele, a 6-foot-6 220-pound forward, helped lead Oakmont to an impressive 25-8 overall record during the 2009-10 season. They also finished second place in their division with a 9-3 record and advanced to the section semifinals under head coach Rick Campbell. Adenrele averaged 11.4 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.8 blocks per game at Oakmont as a junior. For his play in the 2009-10 season, he was awarded SFL League Honorable Mention. Adenrele also played AAU during the off season from spring through summer, under coach Ernest Taubodo with the E-Times Hoops Academy.

DOUBLE TROUBLE
Joe Harden and Mark Payne have both put together double-doubles this season, with Harden posting two consecutive in the most recent games. Throughout the season, all double-doubles by the Aggies will be monitored on a game-by-game basis.

Joe Harden Mark Payne
UC Santa Cruz 11-17 - 16 pts./11 rebs. Florida Atlantic 11-12 - 20 pts./11 rebs.
Wisc.-Milwaukee 11-14 - 21 pts./11 rebs.

1000 POINT WATCH
Seniors Joe Harden and Mark Payne entered the season just shy of the 1000-point plateau, with each player starting the year with over 900 points. Payne reached the career milestone on Nov. 14 vs. Wisc.-Milwaukee, scoring 17 points in the game and becoming the 17th member of the UC Davis 1000-point club. Harden Scored his 1000th on Nov. 27 vs. Seattle, scoring 16 points in the game. The progress of the overall career standings for both players will be monitored on a game-by-game basis.

10. Dominic Calegari, 2006-10 - 1,271 career points
11. Fowzi Abdelsamad, 2000-05 - 1,235 career points
12. Mark Payne, 2007-present - 1,147 career points
13. Mark Ford, 1974-77 - 1,137 career points
Joe Harden, 2008-present - 1,137 career points
15. Jason Robedeaux, 1983-85, '86-88 - 1,112 career points
16. Alan Steed, 1967-70 - 1,107 career points

NO PAYNE NO GAIN
Despite missing eight games due to injury last season, senior guard Mark Payne was the Big West active career leader in three separate categories entering the 2010-11 season, including points (964), assists (352) and steals (149).

In the UC Davis record books, Payne is also in the top ten in career assists and steals and climbing the leader board. His progress will be monitored on a game-by-game basis.

CAREER ASSISTS CAREER STEALS
1. Angelo Rivers, 1982-86 467 1. Dante Ross, 1996-99 186
2. Mark Payne, 2007-Present 405 2. Angelo Rivers, 1983-86 180
3. Dante Ross, 1996-99 380 3. Chris Familetti, 1988-89, '90-92 172
4. Mark Payne, 2007-Present 160

WINNING BREEDS WINNING
There has been a common theme for the UC Davis men's basketball team over the past three years: consistent improvement.

2007-08 season: nine wins, two conference wins. 2008-09 season: 13 wins, seven conference wins. 2009-10 season: 14 wins, eight conference wins.

Coach Stewart is hoping that the Aggies will look to improve on that mark again this season.

"The theme is return and advance," said Stewart. "We want to get to the upper echelon of the conference, return to the conference tournament and advance farther than we did last year. The charge again is to continue to move the program forward, trying to build on some of the successes that we had last year. We feel like if we can remain healthy, we have a golden opportunity to do that."

NOTABLE NON-CONFERENCE GAMES
Cal and perennial national power UCLA highlight a schedule that features three non-conference teams that reached the 20-win plateau. Pac-10 regular-season champion Cal, which beat Louisville in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before losing to eventual national champion Duke in the second, finished 24-11. The Bears will host the Aggies on Dec. 1 at Haas Pavilion as the teams meet for the first time since the 1986-87 season. The Aggies and Bruins will play on Dec. 13 at legendary Pauley Pavilion, facing each other for the second time in the past four seasons. Cal joins Wisc.-Milwaukee (20-14) and Portland (21-11) as 20-game winners on the Aggies' non-conference schedule.

TELEVISED GAMES
UC Davis has a guarantee of three televised games this season, with the possibility of more to come. Currently, the Aggies will make appearances in games vs. UCLA, Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara. In the Dec. 13 matchup with the Bruins, the game will be televised on Prime Ticket. ESPNU will cover the Long Beach State game on Jan. 12, while the Feb. 2 tilt with UC Santa Barbara will also be on Prime Ticket.

HARDEN'S PRESEASON PLAUDIT
Senior guard Joe Harden was named to the Big West Preseason All-Conference Team, voted on by a panel of media members. Harden has been selected to the Big West All-Conference Second Team the past two seasons. Last season, he was also named to the 2010 Big West All Tournament Team and he was named the 2009-10 Best Hustle Player in the Big West. Entering the 2010-11 season, Harden was third in active career leaders in points (908) and rebounds (445).