Big West foes will lock horns when the UC Riverside Highlanders (14-17) play the UC Irvine Anteaters (23-8) at Student Recreation Center. Action starts at 5:00 pm ET on Saturday, Mar. 5.
The Highlanders are hoping to rebound after their 81-55 loss to UC Santa Barbara on Thursday. Menno Dijkstra was the team’s high scorer, recording 10 points. The Anteaters, meanwhile, are coming off a 72-62 win over Cal Poly on Thursday. Mamadou Ndiaye played well for UC Irvine, accumulating 13 points, six rebounds, and four blocks.
Luke Nelson has upped his play for the Anteaters, averaging 15.2 points, 2.2 rebounds, 7.0 assists, 2.2 steals, and 2.4 three-pointers over the past five games.
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Anteaters won the first game 84-68. Nelson was a top performer in the victory with 29 points, one rebound, one steal, and four three-pointers.
The Highlanders enter the game with records of 14-17 Straight Up (SU) and 9-13-1 Against The Spread (ATS).
In the other locker room, the Anteaters head into the game with records of 14-14-1 ATS and 23-8 SU. The UC Irvine defense as a whole has been firing on all cylinders so far, ranking 33rd in Division I with only 65.6 points allowed per game. The UC Irvine defense has been a problem for competitors, allowing only .387 shooting from the field to its opponents. Blocking shots is an area where UC Irvine has excelled. The Anteaters average 5.4 blocks per game, making them one of the best in the nation.
UC Irvine beat UC Riverside in their most recent meeting this season, bumping its SU record over their most recent meetings to 7-3. Furthermore, UC Irvine leads the matchup ATS with a record of 7-3. UC Irvine held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once in the last five matchups. On the other side of the court, UC Riverside never accomplished this feat in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – UC-Irv, ATS Winner – UC-Irv
Notes
UC Riverside averages 69.7 points per game, placing the team just 199th in the nation. UC Irvine ranks 33rd in points allowed, giving up 65.6 points per game.
UC Riverside scores just 71.6 points per home game (ranked 203rd). UC Irvine ranks 26th in points allowed on the road, giving up 67.3 points.
In its last game, UC Riverside lost by a margin of 26 points. UC Irvine is 6-3 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. UC Riverside has a 3-3 record in blowouts.
The UC Riverside Highlanders have a defensive rating of 101.4 (ranked 99th), while the UC Irvine Anteaters have an offensive rating of 105.5 (ranked 193rd).
The UC Irvine Anteaters average a field goal percentage of 46.0% this season. The UC Riverside Highlanders have an underachieving record of 2-6 when opponents have a FG% of 46.0% or greater.
The UC Riverside Highlanders rank lower for their field goal percentage (224th) than they do for their effective field goal percentage (192nd), but the UC Irvine Anteaters have a better FG% ranking (78th) than eFG% ranking (119th).
UC Irvine ranks 59th in assists, recording 15.4 per game. UC Riverside performs worse at 252nd with 12.3 assists per game.
The UC Irvine Anteaters average 5.4 blocks per game, the 17th-ranked team in the country. The UC Riverside Highlanders rank a lowly 203rd in blocking with just 3.2 per game.
On average, UC Riverside makes 5.2 steals per game. UC Irvine has a winning 14-6 record when it gives up at least 5 steals.
