Aaron Lai/HIGHLANDER
Aaron Lai/HIGHLANDER

Feb. 8, 2014

Highlanders 72 – Titans 69

With four minutes left in the game, the men’s basketball team (8-14, 3-5) struggled to cling onto a 16-point second half lead as they faced Cal State Fullerton Thursday night. With the Highlander crowd behind them, Riverside secured its third conference victory of the season, 72-69.

After winning the tip-off, Riverside came out on fire. With four minutes gone into the game, the Highlanders would lead by double digits, 12-2, as they connected on 10 of their first 13 shots. The Titans looked to cut the lead, but missed free throws and jumpers would increase the Highlanders’ lead to as many as 14 points, 41-27. The Highlanders connected on 17 of 27 shots from the field compared to the Titans’ 11-25 in the period. Riverside shot the long ball well as they knocked down four of six attempts. Steven Jones was the first Highlander in double figures with 10 points, while Steven Thornton made his first two three-pointers en route to nine points.

As the second half began, Fullerton started to shoot the ball more freely. Primarily due to Titan guards attacking the basket, UCR’s lead would slowly diminish. With four minutes remaining, Fullerton and Riverside would tie for the first time of the night, 63-63. After a minute of missing shots from both sides, Sam Finley put the Highlanders on top once again, 64-63. As both teams looked for their third victory, buckets continued to be exchanged as Titan Michael Williams fought to keep his team in the game with difficult maneuvers and scores on the wing. With 15 seconds remaining, Austin Quick would secure the victory by knocking down a couple of free throws and by obtaining the offensive rebound, 72-69.

Taylor Johns and Finley led the Highlanders with 13 points each. Chris Patton, Thornton and Jones also tallied 12 points. Titans Williams and Alex Harris led all scorers with 20 points.

 

Feb. 8, 2014

49ers 88 – Highlanders 76

With a crowd of over 1,000 fans, the men’s basketball (8-15, 3-6) team faced rivals Long Beach State Saturday night. Looking for the ninth straight win against Riverside, Long Beach (10-13, 6-3) would succeed as they took the victory, 88-76, on the back of a lights-out shooting first half.

Before the game, the athletic department hosted its second tailgate party of the season, which was attended by over 500 fans while one lucky student was awarded a $500 Visa gift card during the game.

The 49ers came out strong both offensively and defensively as they took an early lead within the first four minutes, 9-3. With the basket seemingly growing in size after every shot, Long Beach continued to drain jumper after jumper. The Highlanders struggled to cut the lead as seemingly every point scored by Riverside was responded to with either a three-pointer or jumper. With five minutes remaining, the 49ers took the largest lead of the night, 51-33. Trying to get back in the game, Nick Gruninger would connect two three-pointers and Sam Finley would score a layup of his own. With back-to-back blocks from Taylor Johns, the half came to a close, 58-48. Long Beach made 56.4 percent of their shots heading into intermission, while Riverside played a seemingly solid game, shooting 52.6 percent.

Trying to turn the game around, Riverside began to gain momentum due in large part to an increase in defensive intensity. The Highlanders cut the lead to three, 69-66, with eight minutes to go, but Long Beach State went on a 10-0 run. Increasing the lead to as many as 15, the 49ers came away with a 12-point victory, 88-76. Long Beach State converted on 52.2 percent of their three-pointers compared to Riverside’s 29.4 percent.

Johns led the Highlanders once again for the week with 20 points and 12 rebounds. Finley tallied 17 while Chris Patton added 12 points. 49er Tyler Lamb led all scorers with 23 points.

The Highlanders will host Hawaii Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. at the Student Recreation Center.