No Matter Who Starts, UC Irvine Keeps Winning

UC Irvine continues to prove it’s not whom you start, but how you finish. Against Florida Atlantic on Monday night, the Anteaters started a true freshman and a sophomore who recently completed a two-year Mormon mission, but that didn’t keep Irvine from winning for the sixth time in seven games, 87-70, at Irvine.

Coach Pat Douglass penciled freshman Mike Efevberha and sophomore forward Greg Ethington into the starting lineup for the third consecutive game and both responded with key points during an early second-half run that put the game away.

Ethington scored all four of his points on consecutive baskets during a 10-0 run at the start of the second half that gave Irvine a 47-33 lead. After the Owls cut the deficit to 10, Efevberha, a guard, made consecutive three-pointers to put the Anteaters ahead, 55-41, with 14 minutes remaining.

Efevberha and Ethington “give us more intensity defensively,” Douglass said.

Adam Parada, who fouled out in four of the first eight games, finished with 13 points and six rebounds in 18 minutes.

Irvine (6-3) was unable to put Florida Atlantic away in the first half, despite holding the Owls to 30% shooting. A big factor was the performances at the free-throw line, where the Anteaters made just three of 10 shots and Florida Atlantic made 16 of 19.

-- Dan Arritt

Portland 54, Long Beach State 49 -- Portland dealt the struggling 49ers their seventh consecutive loss, using a late 8-0 run to post a nonconference victory before 1,632 at the Pyramid.

The losing streak is the longest for Long Beach (1-8) since it dropped the final eight games of the 1986-87 season.

Tony Darden’s three-pointer gave the 49ers a 46-45 lead but it would prove to be the last advantage as they had only one field goal in the final 5:05.

Led by Adam Quick’s 12 points, Portland (6-5) scored its final nine points at the free-throw line. The Pilots turned up their defensive pressure after 49er point guard Darnell Thompson fouled out.

Overall, it was a bad day for the 49ers. Senior forward Lemi Williams, who sat out last season after surgery to repair the tibia in each leg, left the team because of lingering pain.

“Right now I’m dealing with more pain that I can take,” Williams said. “Basically, it’s hard to even walk after practice or after a game. After a game it takes me two days to recover.”

-- Eric Stephens

Loyola Marymount 74, South Carolina St. 69 -- Andy Osborn scored 22 points as the Lions won the consolation game of the Holiday Stores/Big R Classic at Bozeman, Mont.

Loyola Marymount (6-7) trailed by as many as nine points in the first half. But the Lions closed the half with a 16-5 run and led, 32-31, at the break after Osborn’s layup and free throw with 26 seconds left.

South Carolina State (2-7) closed to within 65-63 on Dustin Braddick’s free throw with 2:47 left. But another layup by Osborn put the Lions up by four.

Thurman Zimmerman, who led the Bulldogs with 22 points, made a jumper to close the gap to 67-65 at the 2:15 mark.

Sam Ramsey made a shot off the glass to cut the lead to 69-67 with 1:50 remaining. A pair of free throws by Wes Wardrop at the 1:15 mark and two more by Worthy with 23 seconds remaining put the Lions on top, 73-67.

Worthy finished the night with 13 points. Braddick scored 16 for the Bulldogs.

Associated Press