UCI Coach Turner Postgame Interview

IRVINE, Calif. --- Eight days after UC Irvine handed Cal Poly a 22-point loss in San Luis Obispo, the Mustangs returned the favor Thursday night with a 79-66 win over the Anteaters in a Big West Conference game at the Bren Events Center.

It was the first league loss of the season for UCI (13-10, 6-1) and snapped the Anteaters' eight-game winning streak overall.  Cal Poly (6-14, 1-5) picked up its initial Big West victory of the season.

Victor Joseph led Cal Poly with 22 points and Donovan Fields added 15 as the Mustangs shot 52.6 percent from the field while committing just five turnovers in the game.

Senior guard Jaron Martin led the 'Eaters with 20 points and three assists for his seventh 20-point game of the season.  Senior center Ioannis Dimakopoulos had 13 points while sophomore forward Jonathan Galloway pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds and added a career-high three assists and also had a pair of blocked shots.

Freshman guard Evan Leonard scored nine points off the bench and redshirt freshman guard Max Hazzard added seven points and two assists.

Sophomore forward Brandon Smith scored six points and had two blocks while freshman center Brad Greene had five points and three boards in eight reserve minutes.

UCI shot 43.1 percent for the game and had a 37-32 rebounding advantage.  The Anteaters also had single-digit turnovers with eight.

Cal Poly, which had a 36-35 halftime lead, was ahead for nearly 33 minutes of the game.

Martin scored 12 straight UCI points early in the second half to put the Anteaters up 49-45 with 13:38 remaining, but the Mustangs went on an 11-0 run, capped by a basket from Joseph with 9:18 left to build a 56-49 lead.

A three-point bucket from Smith pulled the 'Eaters within 58-56 with 7:10 remaining before Cal Poly went on a 15-2 run over the next five minutes to take command at 73-58 with 2:11 left.

UCI takes its 6-1 Big West record on the road to second-place UC Davis (12-8, 4-1) Saturday for a 5:00 p.m. game against the Aggies at the Pavilion in Davis.

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