One week into its Big West Conference schedule, the UC Davis men’s basketball team has to like where it stands.

The Aggies either led or were within two possessions of taking the lead in the final minute of all three games.

Most recently, UC Davis (6-10, 1-2) hosted UC Riverside (9-6, 2-2) on Thursday and Long Beach State (9-7, 4-0) on Saturday. The Highlanders and 49ers entered The Pavilion with a combined 5-0 in Big West action.

One team couldn’t stay perfect, and the other was taken to the wire despite an early large lead.

Thursday – UC Davis 65, UC Riverside 58

The Aggies won’t be running into any NBA all-stars during Big West play, but that doesn’t mean they can’t prepare as if they were.

UC Davis treated UCR’s star transfer Kyle Austin like an all-pro, and the effort resulted in Austin’s second-least efficient offensive night of the season in a 65-58 Aggies win.

“Going in, we talked to our guys about treating him like Kobe, like a Dwyane Wade,” said coach Gary Stewart. “He’s a good player. He’s going to get his points. Let’s make it difficult for him, make it difficult to catch and let’s have him shoot 17 or 18 times to score his 17 or 18 points.”

Austin ended up with a game-high 17 points on only 8-of-21 shooting, and his most costly missed shot was also his easiest.

Inside the game’s final two minutes, the junior Southern California transfer clanked a two-handed dunk that would have brought the Highlanders to within one.

Instead, Mark Payne snatched the defensive rebound, pushed the ball in transition to Joe Harden, and the sophomore scored on a layup while being fouled to boost the Aggies’ advantage to five.

The four-point swing was part of a 10-2 run that UC Davis went on to close out the game.

Payne led the Aggies with 16 points of 4-of-6 shooting. He also had a game-high 10 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.

Saturday – Long Beach State 86, UC Davis 78

Not even the most drastic of runs could get the Aggies to go quietly.

Long Beach State scored 40 of the first half’s final 50 points, but UC Davis rallied to cut a 23-point deficit to five before finally succumbing 86-78.

“It was too little too late,” said forward Dominic Calegari. “That’s really what it came down to. If we would have played the way we played in the second half for the whole game, it’s a completely different outcome, by a long shot.”

In the second half, UC Davis outscored Long Beach State 48-34 and turned the ball over only twice. It was a stark difference to the first half when the 49ers held a 52-30 advantage with 20 points coming off 12 Aggie turnovers.

“Besides that little stretch, we played pretty well,” said Vince Oliver, who had 19 points. “But that stretch, it was just too deep of a hole to get out of.”

Donovan Morris scored 13 of his game-high 27 points during the 49ers’ 40-10 run. He finished 10-of-17 from the floor and 4-of-7 from beyond the arc.

Payne had his second straight double-double with team highs of 22 points and 10 rebounds. The sophomore point guard filled out his line with seven assists, two steals and two blocks.

Saturday night’s game was the first of two televised conference games for UC Davis this season. The other comes on Saturday at UC Irvine.

MICHAEL GEHLKEN can be reached at sports@theaggie.org.

Despite a last second line-up change in the event that’s often viewed as the most nerve-racking, the uneven bars turned out to be golden for the Aggies.

Led by their 48.450 on the bars, the Aggies were able to crack the 190-point barrier in their season debut, scoring 190.250 as they beat Cal, who had 186.650. Sac State took the victory with 191.975.

Lida Gehlen – last year’s MPSF champion on the event – and fellow junior Tanya Ho led the bar contingent, tying for second individually with scores of 9.800.

The score tied a career high for Ho, who was also the individual winner of the vault.

“I was really excited about bars and vault,” Ho said. “Bars is the hardest event for me to compete, the most nerve-racking. And vault warm up just didn’t go too well, so I basically had to depend on all my vault training for the competition.”

Experience may have led the bar squad, but the Aggies couldn’t have done it without a couple new faces.

Freshman Chantel Hibbard and senior co-captain Andi Dolinsky both tied for seventh with scores of 9.675. Not only was it the first time Dolinsky competed on bars since the 2007 season, but going into the meet, she wasn’t even planning on doing it.

“I didn’t know I would be going on bars until just minutes before we marched out to compete, so I was really, really nervous,” Dolinsky said. “It took me a little bit to realize that I was actually competing again, and that bar routine may have been the scariest routine I’ve ever had to do.”

Rounding out the scorers was senior co-captain Adee Schoffman, who competed on bars for the first time since she was in high school.

While her 9.500 was the fifth and final score for the Aggies, neither Sac State nor Cal could come up with five scores over 9.000.

“I had my second shoulder surgery in May, so I was finally able to start training bars again,” Schoffman said. “It was actually very nerve-racking to compete on bars for the first time since high school. My goal was to just fight through and stay on the bar.”

The floor turned out some more fine performances for the Aggies. They were led by freshman Jennifer Mueller, who tied for second with a score of 9.750. Right behind her was junior Kayla Koch, who turned in a career-high 9.725 to tie for fourth.

Dolinsky proved she was back with her score of 9.700, and the scorers were rounded out by freshman Erika Van Dyke (9.675) and Schoffman (9.575).

“I have a new floor routine this year that I think the crowd will enjoy,” Schoffman said. “Most of my tumbling passes are the same, but I have new choreography and new music.”

In addition to Ho’s win in the vault, junior Michelle Bobonski – last year’s co-MPSF champion – had a solid showing, scoring 9.700 for fourth. Junior Kendall McCann also managed a top-10 finish with her 9.350.

The only sub-par event for the Aggies was the balance beam, which was the one event in which the Aggies recorded falls. McCann led the squad in ninth with a 9.375, while Bobonski managed a 10th-place finish with her 9.300.

“Beam was definitely our low event since we had five falls,” Dolinsky said, “but our beam coach Teri Lavallee was still very happy with how we did and wants us to use it as a good learning experience.”

All in all, it was a fine opening for the Aggies. A win over Cal, a few career highs and a score in the 190’s means UC Davis is off to a much better start than it had last season.

“I was very happy with the team’s performance,” Schoffman said. “We were very focused today. It felt good to finally get out there and show what we’ve been working on.”

ALEX WOLF-ROOT can be reached at sports@theaggie.org.

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Notes:

Kicker: Feeling a draft

Headline: Adam Loberstein

Quincy Amarikwa and Dylan Curtis have done it all from a collegiate soccer standpoint.

After leading the UC Davis men’s soccer team to its second NCAA Tournament berth in as many years on the Division I scene, Amarikwa and Curtis were named the Big West Conference’s Offensive Player and Midfielder of the Year, respectively, en route to garnering All-American honors.

Now, they’re looking to prove they can have success all over again.

Amarikwa and Curtis have left Aggie Soccer Stadium for Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where they’re looking to impress at the adidas Major League Soccer Player Combine in preparation for Thursday’s 2009 MLS SuperDraft.

The draft begins at 11 a.m. and can be seen on ESPN2.

“They just gave us a bunch of free stuff. I’m all about free stuff,” Curtis joked shortly after arriving at the combine.

The combine, which began Saturday, splits 60 of the best players college soccer has to offer into four teams.

Two games were played per day on Saturday and Sunday, and two more contests will take place Tuesday to put the wraps on the pre-draft showcase.

“How well I do in the combine is how well I do in the draft,” Curtis said. “Basically, we’re just playing soccer. It’s a new level of talent out here, essentially the best 60 college soccer players they could find. …It’s just fun. We get to play soccer in some competitive games.“

Those games figure to be just the beginning of Curtis and Amarikwa’s MLS careers to come.

UC Davis coach Dwayne Shaffer said he’s talked to 14 of the 15 MLS teams about Curtis and Amarikwa within the past two weeks.

“The first thing a coach should know about Quincy is he’s the most competitive kid I’ve ever coached,” Shaffer said of Amarikwa, who’s ranked as the No. 4 forward in the draft by ESPN. “He’ll adapt to the pro game quickly because he’s so competitive. Coaches are going to see that kid kind of start shredding some of their players. He’s off the charts athletically compared to 99 percent of college soccer players.

“Having great players around him – that’ll only make him better than he already is. At the pro level, he’s going to have great players around him that’ll make his job easier.“

Amarikwa wasn’t available for comment.

Shaffer also expects Curtis‘ physical talents to ease his transition into the professional ranks. A 6-foot-2, 190-pounder, Curtis as ranked as the draft’s No. 6 midfielder, according to ESPN.

“Most soccer players that play on the outside generally aren’t that big,” Shaffer said of his former left-winger. “They’re more like 5-foot-10 and 160 or 170 pounds. They’re really quick, but not as big or as strong.

“Dylan’s explosive, he’s fast and he’s so big and so strong that when people try to bump him off the ball, he holds them off and gets around the corner. He’s got an exceptional amount of talent.“

Curtis said living up to his talent starts with the will to get better and desire to keep learning about the game at the MLS level.

“I know that I haven’t reached my peak yet,” he said. “I have high expectations of my abilities to play at a professional level. The amount I was able to progress over the past four years at Davis – I progressed a lot. It’s always nice to see how good you can be, and this is my opportunity to try that out.“

With the opportunity comes an adjustment period for Curtis and Amarikwa. While their talents and collegiate accomplishments speak for themselves, that doesn’t mean their transition to the professional ranks will be a seamless one.

“One of the things that happens in all professional sports,” Shaffer said, “is that these guys come out of college into the pros having had great team chemistry, great camaraderie and having developed great friendships for four to five years. It’s a lot of fun to be a college soccer player and part of a college soccer team.

“When you get to the professional level, the biggest adjustment that they’re going to have to realize is it’s a job at that point. Although it’s still a lot of fun to play and to get paid to play the greatest game in the world, it’s a job.“

Amarikwa and Curtis won’t be the only members from UC Davis‘ soccer program to get a chance to play professionally.

While they might not have been selected for the combine, midfielders Sule Anibaba and Ian Conklin and defender Jordan Vanderpoorten have been invited to MLS trials.

Ahmad Hatifie also would have gotten a look at playing professionally, but his season was cut short due to a compound fracture of his right leg.

“One thing that made those guys pros was that they’re all so competitive,” Shaffer said. “Putting those kids all on the same team at the same time – our training sessions on a daily basis were so competitive that they all made each other better.“

With Curtis, Amarikwa and Co. off to the professional ranks, the UC Davis men’s soccer program’s focus shifts to attracting and developing its next wave of recruits.

“UC Davis is a great school to go to if you want to be seen,” Curtis said. “They’ve proven themselves to be successful. Pro coaches are recognizing Davis as a team to watch.“

“Just during the season alone,” Shaffer said, “I’m aware that there were at least eight Major League Soccer teams that were at our games. That’s pretty cool. They’re coming out here to watch these guys.“

ADAM LOBERSTEIN thinks the UC Davis faithful will have at least two great reasons to start watching more Major League Soccer next season. He can be reached at sports@theaggie.org.XXX

Junior Heidi Kucera won three events to lead UC Davis to a split with San Jose State and Fresno State during a collegiate double-dual women’s swimming and diving meet at Schaal Aquatics Center Saturday afternoon. San Jose State won 10 of the 16 events to sweep both opponents while the Aggies defeated Fresno State.

The Spartans won 170-129 over UC Davis and 240-57 over Fresno State. The Aggies earned a 229.5-67.5 win over the Bulldogs and are now 7-8 overall in duals. With the sweep, San Jose State bumped its dual winning streak to 12 straight and is now 12-1 overall.

Kucera claimed wins in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke and 200 individual medley to lead UC Davis. She also teamed with seniors Emily Medved and Mary Struempf and sophomore Amanda Holman to win the 200-medley relay. Kucera’s winning times were 1:04.73 in the 100 breast, 2:19.69 in the 200 breast and 2:06.90 in the 200 IM.

UC Davis opened the meet with a win in the 200-medley relay in 1:47.23 to jump out to an early lead. The Aggies and Spartans then traded winners in the next four events as the lead shifted back-and-forth.

San Jose State grabbed the lead for good with a win in the 200-butterfly and won seven of the next 10 events, including both 1-meter and 3-meter boards, to earn their first victory over UC Davis in three seasons.

The Aggies ended the meet with another first-place showing as they earned a sweep of the relay events with a time of 3:22.53 in the 400 free relay. Holman teamed with seniors Emily Medved and Amber Bonds and sophomore Linda Hermann in the victory. UC Davis also finished third in the event at 3:39.97.

Hermann also won the 200 freestyle in 1:55.45 and was second in the 500 free (5:10.47) to cap a solid day. Along with swimming on both winning relay teams, Holman also had second-place showings in the 50 free (24.48) and 100 butterfly (58.77).

Senior Kendra Hughes was the highest Aggie scorer on both boards as she went 193.30 to finish fourth on the low board and 199.80 to place third on the high board.

The women’s and men’s swimming team reunite on Saturday for a dual at Big West Conference rival UC Santa Barbara at noon.

Aggie Digest is compiled by the California Aggie sports staff with briefs from the UC Davis athletics website, ucdavisaggies.com.

Teams: UC Davis vs. San Jose State; Fresno State

Where: Schaal Aquatics Center

When: Saturday at 1 p.m.

Who to Watch: Making national “B” cuts as a true freshman, Kayleigh Foley is tearing up the 100-yard freestyle.

The Pleasanton, Calif. native was big news in high school as champion of the 50- and 100-yard free and is now making a name at the collegiate level.

In her last race, Foley was only .04 seconds off of a school record but managed to best teammate Amanda Holman, placing ninth overall at the Husky Invite in December.

Did you know? The UC Davis women have won three straight duals with San Jose State. The Spartans, however, have gone 10-1 in duals this season, losing only to No. 2 Stanford.

Preview: When most UC Davis students looked toward the holiday break as a chance to unwind, the Aggie swimmers expected harder workouts and weight training for their vacation.

The extra practice was expected in preparation to resume their 2008-2009 season, which will continue this weekend in their first home meet. The dual on Saturday is the first of five consecutive weekend meets and will showcase the women of UC Davis, San Jose State and Fresno State.

It’s anticipated that the Spartans will try and take an early lead from the Aggies. San Jose State has made a strong showing so far this season, defeating Air Force, Northern Arizona and UC Santa Cruz, among others. The Spartans are currently ranked No. 2 among mid-major swim teams, while the Aggies ranked No. 5.

The Fresno State Bulldogs are making their debut in the pool against the Aggies.

The men’s team will be swimming time trials, while the dive team will be on exhibition. The men recently came back from a strong showing in Texas, where they broke eight school records, two Big West Conference records and four NCAA trial consideration times.

The men’s team will continue its 2009 season with a dual against nationally ranked UC Santa Barbara.

–Andrea Gutierrez