Teams: UC Davis vs. UC Santa Barbara
Records: Aggies, 12-16 (7-7); Gauchos, 5-8 (12-14)
Where: The Thunderdome – Santa Barbara, Calif.
When: Saturday at 7 p.m.
Radio: KFSG (1690-AM)
Who to watch: Michael Boone has averaged over 19 minutes per game in his last three appearances against UCSB.
On Jan. 22, the 7-foot-2 senior center played 16 minutes against the Gauchos, scoring 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting while tying a career high with eight rebounds in an 89-75 UC Davis win.
Did you know? This will be the Aggies’ final road game of the regular season.
They dropped to 4-3 away from the Pavilion in Big West Conference play after last night’s 72-57 loss to Pacific. The Tigers shot 68.4 percent from the floor in the second half to pull away for the victory.
The loss knocked UC Davis out of a tie for third place in the Big West, bringing it to a fourth-place tie with Cal State Fullerton.
The team plays its final home game of the year on Mar. 7 against Cal State Northridge.
Preview: UCSB joined the party late, but it has suddenly emerged as one of the hottest teams in the Big West.
Hampered by injuries, the Gauchos opened league play by losing seven of nine games. Prior to last night’s 62-57 road loss to Northridge, they had turned their season around by winning three straight in conference and four straight overall.
Senior forward Chris Devine led UCSB with 27 points on 13-for-19 shooting when UC Davis faced the Gauchos last month. Devine entered yesterday’s action ranked third in the Big West in points (18.4 per game), rebounds (7.6 per game) and field goal percentage (.559).
– Michael Gehlken
