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California State University at Bakersfield Athletics

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DalphPanopioDD009
David Dennis/All-Star Sports Photography
52
CSU Bakersfield CSUB 6-8,1-4 Big West
57
Winner UC Irvine Irvine 7-7,2-3 Big West
CSU Bakersfield CSUB
6-8,1-4 Big West
52
Final
57
UC Irvine Irvine
7-7,2-3 Big West
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
CSU Bakersfield CSUB 28 24 52
UC Irvine Irvine 28 29 57

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

CSUB Drops Tight Battle at UC Irvine

IRVINE, Calif. – Battling on the road against the Big West Conference preseason favorite UC Irvine, the CSU Bakersfield men's basketball team received season-best performances from a pair of Roadrunners, but CSUB fell to the host Anteaters, 57-52.

"I thought our kids were really focused on the grand plan," said Rod Barnes, Head Coach of the `Runners, after the narrow loss. "Every night we're trying to put ourselves in a position to win and I thought we did that tonight."

Bakersfield looked to freshman guard Dalph Panopio and junior forward Cameron Smith to lead the way on Thursday night. Panopio, who hails from Rome, Italy, posted a season-best offensive performance with 15 points while adding two rebounds, two assists, and two steals. In his second year at CSUB, Smith tallied 13 points in Irvine, his highest total as a `Runner.

UCI jumped out to an early lead on Bakersfield, surging ahead 12-4 in the first six minutes. Bakersfield tied the game four times, including on Kaleb Higgins' jumper with 26 seconds remaining. The Anteaters looked poised to take a 28-26 lead into halftime on a driving layup, but Justin McCall slid into position and drew a charge with 1.0 seconds on the clock to keep the score tied at the break.

One of the keys to success in the first half was Bakersfield's ability to limit Collin Welp, who was named to the Lou Henson National Player of the Year watch list, to just three points. On the offensive end, Panopio lit up for eight points to lead all scorers at the break while sixth-year senior Justin Edler-Davis chipped in five points and six rebounds in the period.

The second half went back and forth with six lead changes in the first nine minutes. After a floating jumper put UCI ahead 40-39, Bakersfield would never lead again. CSUB tied the score at 47-47, but the `Runners could not find the shots they needed down the stretch to go ahead. UCI held on for the five-point victory, 57-52, while never leading by more than that five-point margin in the period.

After the loss, CSUB (6-8, 1-4 BWC) will prepare for the second leg of this week's road trip. The `Runners are headed further south to San Diego to take on the UC San Diego Tritons (8-11) on Saturday. Tipoff at RIMAC Arena is scheduled for 7 p.m. (PT) and can be watched live on ESPN+. At this time, fans are not permitted to attend basketball games at UC San Diego.

~GoRunners.com~
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