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2020–21 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team

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2020–21 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball
ConferenceBig West Conference
Record18–9 (10–4 Big West)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Ryan Badrtalei
  • Michael Wilder
  • Alex Young
Captains
  • Brad Greene
  • Collin Welp
Home arenaBren Events Center
(Capacity: 5,000)
Seasons
2020–21 Big West men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
UC Santa Barbara 13 3   .813 22 5   .815
UC Irvine 10 4   .714 18 9   .667
UC Riverside 8 4   .667 14 8   .636
UC Davis 6 4   .600 10 8   .556
Cal State Bakersfield 9 7   .563 15 11   .577
Hawai'i 9 9   .500 11 10   .524
Cal State Fullerton 5 7   .417 6 10   .375
Cal State Northridge 5 9   .357 9 13   .409
Long Beach State 4 8   .333 6 12   .333
Cal Poly 1 15   .063 4 20   .167
UC San Diego* 0 0   7 10   .412
* ineligible for the 2021 NCAA tournament and 2021 Big West tournament due to transition period; Big West games not counted in standings
2021 Big West tournament winner

The 2020–21 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team represented the University of California, Irvine in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They played their home games at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, California as a member of the Big West Conference. The Anteaters were led by 11th-year head coach Russell Turner. The team finished the season with an 18–9 (10–4) record finishing 2nd place in the standings and advanced to the 2021 Big West Conference men's basketball tournament where they were defeated by UC Santa Barbara 63–79. The Anteaters continued their success finishing 1st or 2nd for 7 straight seasons in the Big West Conference and 4 straight Big West tournament Championship games (the 2020 Big West Conference men's basketball tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic). The school set a new scoring record and the largest margin of victory (80) on November 28, 2020 over NAIA opponent Bethesda University by the score of 135–55. Also new school records broken in that game were assists (31) and FGs made (56). New Bren Events Center records broken were the most points scored in a first half (70) and game FG % (0.691).

Previous season

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The Anteaters finished the 2019–20 season 21–11, 13–3 in Big West play to win their second straight regular season title. However, the Big West tournament and all other postseason tournaments were canceled as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, effectively ending their season.

The program has won at least 20 games in seven of the last eight seasons. Russell Turner became the winningest coach in program history on January 15 surpassing Pat Douglass's total of 197 wins and won his fourth Big West Coach of the Year Award. Evan Leonard, Eyassu Worku, and Tommy Rutherford all recorded their 1000th point during the season, the first time the program has had three players score 1,000 career points in the same season. The team was 12th in the nation in field goal percentage defense, holding opponents to (38.8%) shooting, 11th in total rebounds (1,269), and third in rebounding margin (+9.4). Brad Greene set a Bren Events Center record with 21 rebounds on January 11 vs Hawaii.[1]

Roster

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The Anteaters had the 2nd youngest team in the nation with 13 underclassmen, behind Navy which had 19.

2019–20 UC Irvine Anteaters men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
F 0 JC Butler 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) RS So The Prairie School Racine, Wisconsin
G 1 Dawson Baker 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Capistrano Valley High School Coto De Caza, California
G 2 Justin Hohn 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) RS Fr Tea High Sioux Falls, South Dakota
G 4 Andre Henry 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Fr Saint Francis High School La Cañada Flintridge, California
G 5 Isaiah Lee 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Australian Institute of Sport Sydney, NSW, Australia
G 10 Ofure Ujadughele (W) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 210 lb (95 kg) RS Fr Chino Hills High School Chino Hills, California
F 11 Hunter Ruck 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Rancho Solano Prep Scottsdale, Arizona
G 13 Austin Johnson 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 223 lb (101 kg) So Link Year Prep/Wheeler High School Marietta, Georgia
G 15 Jeron Artest 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 184 lb (83 kg) So Bella Vista Prep Scottsdale, Arizona
G 21 Jayce Catchings (W) 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Rancho Christian School St. Louis, Missouri
G 22 DJ Davis 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr Riverside Polytechnic High School Moreno Valley, California
F 25 Emmanuel Tshimanga 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 300 lb (136 kg) RS Fr Bella Vista Prep Scottsdale, Arizona
F 31 Dean Keeler 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) So Marina High School Westminster, California
F 40 Collin Welp 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) RS Jr Seattle Preparatory School Seattle, Washington
C 55 Brad Greene 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 270 lb (122 kg) RS Sr Lone Pine High School Lone Pine, California
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: 1 December 2020

Source[2]

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
November 25, 2020*
3:30 pm
vs. Pepperdine L 72–86  0–1
 20  Greene   9  Greene   6  Baker  Viejas Arena (0)
San Diego, CA
November 27, 2020*
4:00 pm, MWN/YurView
at San Diego State L 58–77  0–2
 11  Greene   8  Greene   4  Butler  Viejas Arena (0)
San Diego, CA
November 28, 2020*
8:00 pm, Big West TV
Bethesda W 135–55  1–2
 20  Johnson   16  Johnson   6  Lee  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
December 02, 2020*
6:00 pm, Big West TV
La Sierra W 104–54  2–2
 21  Baker   9  Butler   3  Tied  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
December 08, 2020*
7:00 pm, P12N
at USC L 56–91  2–3
 17  Baker   7  Tied   5  Henry  Galen Center (0)
Los Angeles, CA
December 17, 2020*
7:00 pm, WCCN
at Loyola Marymount L 48–51  2–4
 12  Baker   19  Welp   2  Welp  Gersten Pavilion (0)
Los Angeles
December 19, 2020*
4:00 pm, Big West TV
San Diego W 85–53  3–4
 16  Welp   9  Greene   6  Lee  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
December 27, 2020
4:00 pm, ESPN3
UC Santa Barbara W 75–56  4–4
(1–0)
 14  Greene   12  Greene   4  Tied  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
December 28, 2020
4:00 pm, ESPN3
UC Santa Barbara W 73–69  5–4
(2–0)
 16  Welp   9  Welp   3  Welp  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
January 01, 2021
4:00 pm
at Cal State Northridge Canceled due to COVID-19 issues. Matadome 
Northridge, CA
January 02, 2021
4:00 pm
at Cal State Northridge Canceled due to COVID-19 issues. Matadome 
Northridge, CA
January 08, 2021
4:00 pm
UC Davis Canceled due to Yolo County restrictions. Bren Events Center 
Irvine, CA
January 09, 2021
4:00 pm
UC Davis Canceled due to Yolo County restrictions. Bren Events Center 
Irvine, CA
January 8, 2021*
4:00 pm
at UC San Diego Canceled due to COVID-19 issues. RIMAC Arena 
La Jolla, CA
January 9, 2021*
4:00 pm, ESPN3
at UC San Diego W 79–65  6–4
 23  Davis   6  Welp   3  Tied  RIMAC Arena (0)
La Jolla, CA
January 22, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN3
Cal Poly W 68–49  7–4
(3–0)
 15  Welp   8  Greene   3  Welp  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
January 23, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN3
Cal Poly W 67–44  8–4
(4–0)
 18  Welp   7  Tied   3  Hohn  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
January 29, 2021
9:00 pm, Spectrum OC16 Big West TV
at Hawaii W 53–51  9–4
(5–0)
 18  Greene   14  Greene   4  Davis  Stan Sheriff Center (0)
Honolulu, HI
January 30, 2021
9:00 pm, Spectrum OC16 Big West TV
at Hawaii L 61–62 OT 9–5
(5–1)
 20  Welp   11  Greene   2  Artest  Stan Sheriff Center (0)
Honolulu, HI
February 05, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN3
Cal State Bakersfield W 70–53  10–5
(6–1)
 16  Welp   8  Greene   2  Tied  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
February 06, 2021
7:00 pm, ESPNU
Cal State Bakersfield L 57–62  10–6
(6–2)
 14  Welp   8  Welp   3  Davis  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
February 12, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN3 Wildcard
at UC Riverside L 65–86  10–7
(6–3)
 21  Davis   7  Greene   3  Welp  SRC (0)
Riverside, CA
February 13, 2021
9:00 pm, ESPNU
at UC Riverside W 73–67  11–7
(7–3)
 27  Welp   13  Welp   4  Lee  SRC (0)
Riverside, CA
February 19, 2021
5:00 pm, Big West TV
at Cal State Fullerton W 89–78  12–7
(8–3)
 23  Baker   11  Welp   4  Baker  Titan Gym (0)
Fullerton, CA
February 20, 2021
5:00 pm, Big West TV
at Cal State Fullerton L 64–67  12–8
(8–4)
 21  Welp   13  Greene   3  Lee  Titan Gym (0)
Fullerton, CA
February 26, 2021*
4:00 pm, ESPN3
UC San Diego W 80–55  13–8
 29  Welp   10  Welp   4  Davis  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
February 27, 2021*
4:00 pm, ESPN3
UC San Diego W 75–64  14–8
 19  Welp   12  Welp   3  Tied  Bren Events Center (0)
Irvine, CA
March 05, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN3
at Long Beach State W 71–68 OT 15–8
(9–4)
 18  Tied   9  Greene   5  Davis  Walter Pyramid (0)
Long Beach, CA
March 06, 2021
4:00 pm, ESPN3
at Long Beach State W 73–58  16–8
(10–4)
 14  Baker   9  Welp   3  Tied  Walter Pyramid (0)
Long Beach, CA
Big West tournament
March 11, 2021
5:00 pm, ESPN3
(2) vs. (10) Cal Poly
Quarterfinals
W 58–51  17–8
 15  Welp   10  Welp   2  Tied  Michelob Ultra Arena (0)
Paradise, NV
March 12, 2021
9:00 pm, ESPNU
(2) vs. (3) UC Riverside
Semifinals
W 78–61  18–8
 17  Tied   7  Greene   2  Tied  Michelob Ultra Arena (0)
Paradise, NV
March 13, 2021
8:30 pm, ESPN2
(2) vs. (1) UC Santa Barbara
Championship
L 63–79  18–9
 22  Welp   8  Greene   2  Greene  Michelob Ultra Arena (17)
Paradise, NV
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Source[3]

References

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  1. ^ "2019–20 MEN'S BASKETBALL SEASON REVIEW". University of California, Irvine. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  2. ^ "2020–21 Men's Basketball Roster". University of California, Irvine. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  3. ^ "2020–21 Men's Basketball Schedule". University of California, Irvine. Retrieved December 1, 2020.