IRVINE, Calif – Forward Devin Tillis poured in a career-high 25 points as UC Irvine downed Pepperdine 80-62 at the Bren Events Center Saturday evening.
 
Tillis went 10-12 from the floor including 3-3 from beyond the arc and 2-2 from the line. The redshirt senior recorded his first double-double of the year with a season-best 11 rebounds.
 
Center Bent Leuchten had a career-best 15 rebounds, which is tied for 15th most in a game nationally, to go with eight points, three assists and a steal.
 
The Anteaters were a perfect 14-14 from the free throw line, joining Wisconsin (16-16) and Tulane (15-15) as the only schools to not miss a free throw in a contest this season.

UC Irvine, who remains undefeated at 4-0, also dominated the Waves on the glass, 48-29.

FROM HEAD COACH RUSSELL TURNER
"I feel good about winning the way that we did, wearing the team down with our depth and athleticism and I think that is what happened. I thought their two best guys controlled the game in the first half, wore them down, and struggled in the second both offensively and defensively. I don't know if we were ask locked in on what we wanted to accomplish to begin the game and sometimes that is what it takes. It takes a little bit of going through it. I thought we were a little soft on offense and gave Pepperdine some confidence because we didn't finish shots around the basket and missed some open shots that we typically make, but I want to credit our second unit. Those guys were ready. I thought Jurian (Dixon) was terrific and I thought Torian (Lee) was terrific in his minutes. We have gotten some contributions from a lot of guys."

"We know we can guard the perimeter well. We have done that with these guys and I expect that as something we can count on. I looked at the stat sheet and saw that Devin (Tillis) had 25 points and I couldn't believe it because all I kept seeing was doing what Devin always does. He made three out of three from three and I thought he was really good against Pepperdine's post doubles when they came. I am really proud of Devin though because I don't think he has gotten this type of attention for the role that he plays. I thought defensively in the second half that Bent (Leuchten) was dominant. That is what I told him after the game. We know he can play and that he is going to learn from this experience. Kyle (Evans) also made some key plays. The contrast between Kyle with his speed and Bent with his size is a good thing for us when we rebound effectively."

FROM DEVIN TILLIS
"After missing that first lay-up, my teammates told me to keep going so I stayed the course. Coach Turner kept telling me to play hard on defense and it will come to me on offense and that is exactly what happened. Honestly, I felt some magic coming into tonight. Also, I was just following the game plan. Coach Turner puts me in a position to succeed and as long as I stay on whatever he gives me to do then I'm going to do it and it works."
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
> Guard Justin Hohn added 11 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals
> Guard Myles Che went 8-8 from the free throw line and ended the night with 11 points
> Guard Andre Henry had seven points, three rebounds and two assists
> The Anteaters shot 40.9 (28-69) from the floor and 40 percent from long range with 10 three-pointers (10-25)
> Pepperdine had a trio of players with double-digit points led by Stefan Todorovic's 17. Boubacar Coulibaly added 14 points and Moe Odum recorded 12 points and eight assists
> The Waves (1-2) shot 38.3 percent (23-60) from the field and had six blocks

FIRST HALF
> Pepperdine opened the scoring with a dunk then Devin Tillis (18:51) responded with a top of the arc triple, 3-2
> A 6-0 Anteater run with four points from Bent Leuchten off a baseline reverse (18:12) and free throws (16:58) along with a high off the glass make from Justin Hohn (17:29) jutted UCI out 9-4 before Pepperdine was fueled by 16 unanswered to go ahead, 20-9 at 12:48
> UC Irvine went on a seven-point scoring stint over 90 seconds to close within four, 20-16, which was answered by seven from the Waves, 27-16 (8:35)
> The Anteaters strung together six points from Tillis on an offensive board put-back (6:41), receiving the ball at the post on a lob (6:18), and two free throws (5:37), and a triple by Jurian Dixon (4:57) tied the game 29-all
> Tillis and Leuchten tag teamed on the last four UCI points as Tillis found Leuchten running down the paint for an open dunk at 2:08 then Leuchten found Tillis under the basket as the 'Eaters trailed 35-33 into the halftime break
 
SECOND HALF
> UCI exploded offensively, going on an 13-2 run, which included three three-pointers from Andre Henry (15:11), Tillis (13:51), Torian Lee (12:55) and capped by a Kyle Evans layup at 12:32, 55-44
> Back-to-back layups by Tillis gave UCI the 59-48 lead (9:22) then a three-pointer by Myles Che and two Hohn free throws made it 71-56 at 4:52
> Che drained six consecutive free throws, 77-60 (1:38)
> With two seconds left, Ofure Ujadughele hit a three-pointer from the left corner as he was falling down to cap the night, 80-62
 
NOTES
> For the fourth consecutive game, UCI has held its opponent to fewer than 28 second half points, allowing only 27 tonight
> The Anteaters have won two straight against Pepperdine and three of the last four
> Through all games played on Saturday, UC Irvine is the top ranked team in offensive rebound percentage defense (13.7) in KenPom
> UCI is the first Big West team to hit four wins and is one of three league schools who remain undefeated
> The 'Eaters remain undefeated against the WCC, 2-0, in non-conference action
> Bent Leuchten averages a double-double on the season with 14 points and a league leading 10.3 rebounds per game
> Devin Tillis tops the Big West with his efficient 74.2 shooting percentage (23-31) while Myles Che is third across all conference players in free throw shooting percentage (0.923, 12-13)

UP NEXT
The Anteaters start their four-game road stint with a trip to Ogden on Nov. 22 for a 6 p.m. tilt with Weber State.