Thursday, March 7
Irvine, CA
7 p.m.
4-27,0-19Big West
68
at
82
UC Irvine
23-8,16-3Big West
1
2
F
Cal Poly
35
33
68
UC Irvine
40
42
82
Team Stats
CPO
Irvine
FG%
.434
.500
3FG%
.533
.333
FT%
.737
.789
RB
32
35
TO
11
7
STL
2
3
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
22
FGM
8
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
13
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
2
Pts
13
FGM
5
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Players Mentioned
PG
/ Men's Basketball
SG
/ Men's Basketball
PG
/ Men's Basketball
CG
/ Men's Basketball
Photo by: Owen Main
Four in Double Figures, but Cal Poly Falls at Big West Leader UC Irvine
3/7/2024 9:17:00 PM | Men's Basketball
IRVINE – Senior guard Kobe Sanders led four Mustangs in double-digit scoring figures with a game high 22 points Thursday evening, but the Cal Poly men's basketball program – despite trailing Big West leader UC Irvine by just five at the break – sustained an 82-68 setback inside the Bren Events Center.
Freshman guard Justin Page matched a career best with 13 points alongside graduate guard Jarred Hyder for Cal Poly (4-27, 0-19), which trailed by three late in the first half before UC Irvine (23-8, 16-3) shot 51.6 (16-for-31) percent from the floor during the second half to pull away. With the win, UC Irvine claimed both the Big West regular season title and the top seed for the conference championship after second place UC San Diego fell at home to UC Davis, 70-63.
Freshman guard Quentin Jones added 10 points for Cal Poly and a team high nine rebounds.
With his 22-point performance, Sanders – a double-digit scorer in all 28 appearances this season – requires just 22 more to become the 26th player in program history to reach 1,000 during a career.
Cal Poly concludes the 2023-24 regular season on Saturday, March 9 when visiting UC San Diego. Tip time on ESPN+ is 7 p.m.
During Thursday's matchup, UC Irvine led 34-21 with five minutes remaining in the opening half before the Mustangs – keyed by five first-half three-pointers – closed the period with a 14-6 run. Cal Poly twice cut its deficit to three points in the final two minutes before a layup from Anteaters guard Derin Saran provided the hosts a 40-35 edge heading into the locker room.
A Page three-pointer – one of three he knocked down Thursday – two minutes into the second half kept Cal Poly's deficit at 46-41, but UC Irvine limited the Mustangs to just two field goals during an ensuing eight-and-a-half-minute stretch to push the lead to 64-45.
Freshman guard Justin Page matched a career best with 13 points alongside graduate guard Jarred Hyder for Cal Poly (4-27, 0-19), which trailed by three late in the first half before UC Irvine (23-8, 16-3) shot 51.6 (16-for-31) percent from the floor during the second half to pull away. With the win, UC Irvine claimed both the Big West regular season title and the top seed for the conference championship after second place UC San Diego fell at home to UC Davis, 70-63.
Freshman guard Quentin Jones added 10 points for Cal Poly and a team high nine rebounds.
With his 22-point performance, Sanders – a double-digit scorer in all 28 appearances this season – requires just 22 more to become the 26th player in program history to reach 1,000 during a career.
Cal Poly concludes the 2023-24 regular season on Saturday, March 9 when visiting UC San Diego. Tip time on ESPN+ is 7 p.m.
During Thursday's matchup, UC Irvine led 34-21 with five minutes remaining in the opening half before the Mustangs – keyed by five first-half three-pointers – closed the period with a 14-6 run. Cal Poly twice cut its deficit to three points in the final two minutes before a layup from Anteaters guard Derin Saran provided the hosts a 40-35 edge heading into the locker room.
A Page three-pointer – one of three he knocked down Thursday – two minutes into the second half kept Cal Poly's deficit at 46-41, but UC Irvine limited the Mustangs to just two field goals during an ensuing eight-and-a-half-minute stretch to push the lead to 64-45.
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