Aggies fall to UCSB in semifinals
Anigwe, Squire post career highs
Christian Anigwe set a new career-high by scoring 15 points in addition to finishing with a team-high eight rebounds, Elijah Pepper ended with 13 points and Damion Squire matched a career-high by collecting seven boards in Friday’s Big West Men’s Basketball Championship semifinal game against UC Santa Barbara at Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas.
Both teams posted similar overall shooting figures as UC Davis shot .415 overall (22-for-53) against the Gauchos’ .426 percentage (20-for-47), and only three rebounds separated each team’s total with UCSB edging the Aggies by a 31-28 margin.
The Aggies also scored 28 points in the paint compared to their opponent’s 26, but UC Santa Barbara’s biggest advantage in this matchup took place at the free-throw line since it scored 28 points out of 34 attempts, and UC Davis — the Big West Conference’s No. 1 free-throw shooting team entering tonight’s game — scored six points on its eight trips to the stripe, as the No. 2-seeded Gauchos defeated the No. 4-seeded
Aggies, 71-55.
By winning seven out of its final nine games, UC Davis ends the 2020-21 season at 10-8. UC Santa Barbara will continue tournament play with a 21-4 record.
“I want to congratulate UCSB, they showed why they are the No. 1 seed. They are a talented team who played well tonight,” said UC Davis head coach Jim Les. “We just looked mentally and physically tired tonight and did not have our usual pop. I am not sure if that is due to yesterday’s game with the energy we expended to advance to the semis, or if this was a culmination of a season that took a toll on this team.”
Earlier this year, the Aggies endured a seven-week pause in competition to remain compliant with Yolo County Health orders, which forced the cancellation of 11 games.
“I told everybody after the game that I could not be more proud of a group of young men who fought through a number of adverse and unique situations,” Les said. “They stayed together, continued to work, and did everything we asked them to do. For that, I am extremely proud of them.”
Due to the dedication and discipline showed by everyone in the program since they arrived to campus in August before summer workouts commenced, zero positive COVID tests were recorded throughout the 2020-21 academic year.
“From the bottom of my heart, I was so proud of the way they handled this year with all the things that were thrown at them,” Les said. “They showed a great attitude and a great desire to compete the entire time. This season did not end the way we wanted it to end, but there were a lot of positives that took place this season and the future is bright with this group.”