BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – The CSUB men's basketball team continued its winning ways, picking up its second consecutive win by vanquishing former Roadrunner Head Coach Pat Douglass and UC Irvine, 68-55, Wednesday night at Rabobank Arena.
Douglass led CSUB to three NCAA Division II titles (1993, 1994, 1997), winning 257 games during his 10 years on the Roadrunner bench before leaving for Irvine following the 1997 season. But he's 0-2 as a visiting coach, losing an exhibition game in Rabobank Arena in 2002 before falling Wednesday night.
UCI (9-14 overall) took an early lead, but CSUB (5-16) battled back to take the lead for good late in the first half. They held the Anteaters at bay throughout the second half to post their biggest margin of victory (13 points) since a 98-64 win over Loyola Marymount during the 2008 season.
Senior forward Trent Blakley (Alta Loma HS) led all scorers with 20 points for CSUB, his 25th consecutive game in double figures. Fellow forward Santwon Latunde (Landover, Md./Cowley County CC) added his fifth double-double of the season with 17 points and a game-high 10 rebounds.
Sophomore forward Eric Wise was the only Anteater to reach double figures, leading UCI with 18 points.
The teams played through a choppy first seven minutes, with UCI forging its biggest lead at 14-8. Down 17-13 midway through the half, the Roadrunners caught fire. Donavan Bragg's (Inglewood/Serra HS) baseline jumper capped a 12-0 run to putt CSUB up 25-17 inside the final minute.
The Roadrunners would extend their lead to 13 points on a Blakley three-pointer midway through the second half before Irvine began chipping away. Twice, the Anteaters closed to within three points, the last time at 53-50 on a pretty alley-oop dunk by Zack Atkinson off a feed from Wise.
But CSUB followed with a quick 10-2 run put an end to the comeback, and the Roadrunners stretched their advantage to as many as 15 points in the waning moments before settling on the 13-point final margin.
CSUB and UCI will meet again Saturday (Feb. 6) at the Bren Events Center in Irvine. It will be the nightcap of a men's/women's doubleheader.
