UCI gears up for a Big start

Amara Aguilar

It’s time for a Big show featuring Big competitors, Big plays and

Big stakes.

The UC Irvine men’s basketball team opens Big West Conference play in

a Big way, taking on Long Beach State at the Bren Events Center tonight

at 7:05.

The Anteaters bring a 5-4 record into the contest and are coming off a

75-74 loss to UCLA at Pauley Pavilion on Dec. 15.

The 49ers (3-7) have lost five straight games, including a 76-68 loss

to Loyola Marymount Tuesday at The Pyramid. Before falling to LMU, the

49ers were defeated by Stanford, USC, Pepperdine and Texas A&M.;

“It’s exciting,” UCI Coach Pat Douglass said. “Long Beach State is

much better than their record. They have had a tough schedule, so we

think they are very talented.”

Leading the way for the Anteaters is last year’s Big West Player of

the Year, senior guard Jerry Green, who is averaging 24.1 points per game

and 4.4 rebounds. Green scored a game-high 27 points in UCI’s loss to the

Bruins.

He ranks third with 1,559 points on UCI’s career scoring list. Dave

Baker is second with 1,601 and Tod Murphy holds the top spot with 1,778.

In addition to Green, tentative starters for UCI include sophomore

forward Stanislav Zuzak (8.9 ppg, 4.7 rebounds). Zuzak has stepped up his

game lately, scoring a career-high 22 points against UCLA. Against UC

Davis on Dec. 1, Zuzak scored 21 points and pulled down 12 rebounds.

“I think that Zuzak has broke out and he appears to be gaining

confidence and appears to be more relaxed,” Douglass said.

The rest of UCI’s starting line-up should include junior forward

Jordan Harris (10.1 ppg, 5.6 rebounds), sophomore center Adam Parada

(11.6 ppg, 7 rebounds) and junior guard Mike Hood (7.9 ppg).

Parada had a good showing for the Anteaters against UCLA, scoring 12

points and grabbing nine rebounds.

The Anteaters, who have been burned by too many turnovers, will look

to lower their 18.3 average per game. Green had a game-high eight against

UCLA.

“We are definitely looking to show up ball handling abilities,”

Douglass said. “We worked on fundamentals to focus on that area. (Green)

is working diligently to improve his efficiency with the ball.”

UCI will also look to extend a school-record 15-game win streak at the

Bren Events Center.

The Bren is quite familiar territory for the 49ers. Long Beach State

leads the series with UCI, 41-20, but lost the last meeting at UCI,

83-78, on Feb. 22. Green led all scorers with 25 points.

Long Beach State will attempt to snap UCI’s home win streak with help

from senior guard Ron Johnson (12.4 ppg) and senior center James Williams

(12 ppg, 6.6 rebounds).

Senior forward Travis Reed has also played well for the 49ers,

averaging a team-leading 7.9 rebounds per game and 11.9 points per game.

He led all scorers with 15 points in Long Beach State’s loss to LMU.

Last year Long Beach State finished third in the Big West with a 10-6

conference record while kingpin UCI was 15-1.