Visions of First Basketball Victory This Season Dance in Baker’s Head

Looking for an Irvine men’s basketball victory in its final 15 games isn’t easy, unless you have Coach Rod Baker’s vision.

“It’s definitely there,” Baker said. “For me, it’s a matter of which day it’s going to be. I can see it quite clearly.”

Ah, but exactly who and when?

A short list.

* UC Santa Barbara.

Why: The Gauchos aren’t very good this season. In fact, one of Pepperdine’s three victories came against Santa Barbara. Of the Gauchos’ five victories, two are against Westmont, an NAIA team. Even the “Thunderdome,” once a difficult place to play because of the noise, has produced little more than a rumble recently.

Why not: Forward Kealon Wallace. He missed seven weeks because of a broken bone in his hand and struggled his first three games back. But in the last four games, he has averaged 13 points and nine rebounds. Wallace, a 6-foot-6 junior, had a 25-point, 12-rebound game against the Anteaters last season.

* North Texas.

Why: It’s North Texas. You never hear that name mentioned with North Carolina, or even Northwestern, when people talk about college basketball. The Eagles have seven victories, but four have come against Sam Houston State, Mary Hardin-Baylor, Norfolk State and Phillips University. Besides, Irvine doesn’t have to travel to Denton, Texas, for the Feb. 6 game.

Why not: North Texas has limited its opponents to 39% from the field. Plus 7-0 Sean Riley and 6-6, 225-pound David Miller can be tough inside. As for the home court advantage, well, no one else has had too much trouble beating the Anteaters in the Bren Center this season.

* Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

Why: See North Texas. Among the Mustang victories are Cal Baptist and Simon Fraser. They also depend heavily on their outside shooting, so a cold night from the field might give Irvine a chance. It probably won’t happen Thursday in San Luis Obispo’s Mott Gymnasium, which Mustang Coach Jeff Schneider has said is like Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium--complete with fans camping out for tickets (they could just be campers, this is San Luis Obispo). But the Mustangs have yet to win a road game this season.

Why not: The Mustangs beat New Mexico State and Santa Barbara in their first two Big West Conference games in front of sellout crowds of 3,141--maybe it is Cameron West? They are 6-1 at home. The game in Irvine will be the regular-season finale. If the Anteaters haven’t won by then, morale could be a problem.

* Long Beach State.

Why: The 49ers might not have any players left by the time the teams play again. They are down to nine now.

Why not: The 49ers already beat the Anteaters once and they get them at home next time.

Which brings us to . . .

* Southern Utah.

Why: Just the name sounds like a victory. (See Mary Hardin-Baylor, for example).

Why not: If the Anteaters couldn’t win at Eastern Washington in early December, then playing in Cedar City, Utah, in late February could be a problem. Besides, St. Louis only beat Southern Utah by four at home Monday.

And how clearly does Baker see victories two, three, four . . .?

“I’m willing to bet big money that you know the answer to that,” Baker said.

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There are some silver linings.

Lamarr Parker has looked like a point guard the last two games, as he created offense. Parker had 18 points Thursday against Pacific despite suffering a sprained foot with eight minutes left. Even nursing that injury, Parker had a 23-point, six-assist game Saturday against Long Beach State.

“Lamarr is really showing the leadership we need from him,” Baker said.

Paul Foster, the player Baker remembers from the end of last season, has finally showed up. His numbers were not overwhelming, but he was vicious as an offensive rebounder. Foster had eight against Pacific and four against Long Beach State.

“Since the first of the year, it’s been like the old Paul,” said Baker, who previously said he was “disappointed” in Foster’s play.

Wendell Robinson, who was taken out of the starting lineup three games ago, made seven of 10 shots and scored 15 points against Long Beach State.

Baker also said players have responded to individual workouts, which began last week.

“It’s an opportunity to work on things you can’t work on in practice,” Baker said.

“I think it has helped [forward] Brian Johnson the most. He is playing with much more confidence. He has seen there are other things his athleticism can do besides dunk.”

Johnson had 16 points against Pacific and nine points and eight rebounds against Long Beach State.

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Women’s basketball coach Colleen Matsuhara got her first victory at Pacific last week, but her team failed to follow it up at Long Beach State.

Irvine had lost five previous games at Pacific under Matsuhara. But the Anteaters forced 30 turnovers and hit key free throws down the stretch to beat the Tigers, 57-54. Irvine held Pacific to one field goal in the last 2 minutes 16 seconds.

“We hoped to return with two wins,” Matsuhara said. “I told the team they didn’t have any reason to be euphoric after one conference game. I knew Long Beach was a dangerous team.”

The 49ers were and Irvine failed to do what it did well at Pacific.

The Anteaters turned the ball over 26 times, made only 14 of 26 free throws and lost, 81-71, Sunday.

Shooting, however, is not a problem. Irvine is shooting 46%, tops in the Big West Conference. Leticia Oseguera is shooting 56% from the field.

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The men’s volleyball team finished eighth in the 24-team Santa Barbara tournament last weekend. The Anteaters went undefeated in pool play on Friday, when they beat Stanford.