IRVINE, Calif. -- The Anteaters make the trip out to Salt Lake City for the first round of the NIT against No. 2 seeded Utah on Tuesday Mar. 19. Tip-off is slated for 9 p.m. MT.

UC Irvine at [2] Utah
Tuesday, Mar. 19 | 9:00 p.m. MT (8:00 p.m. PT)
Jon M Huntsman | Salt Lake City, Utah
AM 830 | Live Stats | Watch (ESPN2) | Tickets | Game Notes

ABOUT UTAH
> The University of Utah headed into the Pac-12 Championship tournament on a two game losing streak dropping to both of the Oregon schools (Oregon State, L 92-85 and Oregon L 66-65)
> The Runnin' Utes defeated Arizona State handily in the first round of the tournament, 90-57, before dropping to Colorado in the quarterfinals (L, 72-58)
> Utah holds a 14-2 record on their home floor where they were a perfect 6-0 in the non-conference slate before seeing two defeats during the Pac-12 season, 8-2
> The Utes enter the contest with a 19-14 overall record, the program's most wins since the 2017-18 season where they went 23-12
> Utah ranks top-50 nationally in the following categories: assists per game (18th, 17.3), rebounds per game (35th, 39.06), assist-turnover ratio (38th, 1.46), three-point field goals made per game (41st, 8.9), and effective field goal percentage (48th, 0.542)
> Branden Carlson leads Utah with his 546 total points on the season, 17.1 per game
> Carlson is the team's leaders in trips made to the free throw line with his 78 makes on 110 attempts (0.709)with grabbing a Utes best 216 rebounds (6.8 per game)
> The center Carlson was named to the First Team All-Pac-12 for the second consecutive season while being placed onto the Associated Press Second Team All-Pac-12
> Gabe Madsen is next up in the scoring effort for Utah with 13.0 points per game, 430 total
> Madsen sees a lot of time on the floor for the Runnin' Utes, averaging 32.3 minutes per game, 1066:07 total
> Deivon Smith ranks third on the team with 12.4 points per game, 297 total
> Smith is the top distributor for Utah with 160 assists (6.7 apg) and is second on the team in steals (23)
> The guard Smith was named an All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention after his three triple-doubles and nine double-doubles in league play
> Rollie Worster is close to being a double figure scoring as he pours in 9.9 points per game and has dished out 88 assists in 16 games played
> Keba Keita connects on a team best 0,616 shot clip (114-185) from the floor
> Keita leads Utah in blocks with 35
> Cole Bajema joins Madsen as the only two Ute players who have started and played in all 33 games
> Utah finished sixth in the Pac-12 after their predicted seventh place finish in the league

UC IRVINE POSTSEASON HISTORY IN THE NIT
UC Irvine clinched their eighth postseason appearance in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) with an at-large bid. The Anteaters hold a 2-7 record in the tournament. UCI makes their second consecutive appearance in the postseason invitational for the second time in program history where the last back-to-back trips were in 2001 and 2002.
 
BACK TO BACK REGULAR SEASON CHAMPIONS
After defeating Cal State Fullerton on Saturday (Mar. 9) evening, UC Irvine holds onto the first place spot with a 17-3 Big West record and claimed their seventh Big West regular season title under head coach Russell Turner in a 10 year span, ninth in program history, with their win over Cal Poly (Mar. 7). It is the fourth time that the Anteaters have done this is back to back years.

ALL BIG WEST SELECTIONS
Pierre Crockrell II, Justin Hohn, and Andre Henry each received All-Big West honors, the conference announced on Tuesday afternoon. Crockrell II was named to the six man All-Big West First Team, after his honorable mention nod last season. Hohn earned a spot on the  All-Big West Second Team for his first career postseason award. Hohn was selected at the Big West's Best Defensive Player, the first Anteater to be named to the designation since Brad Greene in 2020. Additionally, Henry was placed as an honorable mention.

POTENT OFFENSE AND DEFENSE
UC Irvine heads into the NIT First Round as the top scoring defense team in the Big West limiting their opponents to 67.8 points per game while putting up a league best 77.7 points per game. The Anteaters have held seven league foes (nine games) as well as four non-conference opponents to 65 points or fewer. UCI holds the second mark in the conference in opponent field goal percentage (0.408). The Anteaters round out their Big West scoring leader mark with a 9.9 scoring margin in their 33 contests played this season.

LONG TIME NO SEE
UC Irvine and Utah will meet for the first time in 16 years on Tuesday. The two teams last met in the 2008-09 season where the Anteaters hosted the Runnin' Utes inside the Bren Events Center on December 27, 2008 (L, 60-52). UCI last played Utah in Salt Lake City just a year earlier, Dec. 2007 (L, 78-66).

BATTLE OFF THE BOARDS
Utah enters Tuesday's contest as a top-50 team in the nation with 39.0 rebounds per game (35th), 1287, and have out-rebound their opponents by 2.7. While not top-50, UC Irvine comes in at 66th nationally with 37.79 boards per game (1247 total) and outperform their opponents off the glass by a 4.9 margin, good for 40th in the nation. Both teams rank second and third in their respective conferences in rebounding.

DUEL OF THE GUARDS
Tuesday night's game will feature a duel between point guards, Pierre Crockrell II (UCI) and Deivone Smith (UU). Crockrell II sits atop the Big West in total assists (212) and assists per game (6.4) while ranking top-15 nationally in both categories. Smith has 160 dimes in 24 games played, 6.7 per game, and was one of two players in the country that dished out 100-plus assists in 22 games or less played in the 2023-24 campaign. The Georgia transfer is second nationally with three triple-doubles on the year.

CLIMBING THE NCAA ACTIVE CAREER RANKS
Pierre Crockrell II currently sits eighth in the all-time active career assist leader board with his 701 assists in 149 games played. The fifth year senior is two assists behind seventh place and has amassed this amount in the third fewest games out of the top-10 active players. Additionally, Crockrell II is sixth with his 2.64 assist-turnover ratio. 

CAREER LEADER BOARD WATCH
With 131 made three-pointers in his career, redshirt senior Justin Hohn is tied for 17th in the career made three-pointers leader board and is one three-pointer away from tying Rod Palmer (1988-90) for 16th and three off from reaching 15th with Nic Campbell (2003-07). Additionally, Pierre Crockrell II is top-10 in program history for career assists, ranking seventh with 390 total. Crockrell II is now 22 assists away from catching Jerry Green (1998-02) for sixth. 

UC IRVINE EDGED BY LBSU IN TIGHTLY CONTESTED SEMIFINAL (MAR. 15)
It went down to the wire, but No. 1 seed UC Irvine fell short, dropping to No. 4 seed Long Beach State, 83-79, in the first semifinal of the Big West Championship at The Dollar Loan Center on Friday (Mar. 15) evening. The free throw line was key with The Beach going 22-25 (0.880) from the stripe, including 15-17 in the second half, while the Anteaters were 10-19 (0.526). UC Irvine was led by the back-court with Justin Hohn recording 19 points and Pierre Crockrell II following with 18 points. Hohn went 7-15 from the floor with three three-pointers. Crockrell II knocked down 9-15, a season best, from the field and led all players with nine assists. Center Bent Leuchten and forward Devin Tillis each totaled 10 points. Leuchten grabbed a team-best nine rebounds. Guard Andre Henry tallied nine points with three rebounds and two steals

ALL ABOUT THE ROTATION
The 'Eaters, who are a strong scoring team receive a lot of momentum from the second and third rotations. UCI is ranked 21st nationally in bench points per game (28.52) and have out performed their opponent 21 times this season with non-starters. 

SINGLE SEASON ASSISTS LEADER BOARD
Pierre Crockrell II sits in third place in the all-time season assists leader board with his 212 assists in 2023-24. He is 18 dimes away from catching Raimond Miglinieks' (1995-96) 230 that is good for second place. Crockrell II solidified himself in UCI history as he the second ever Anteater to hit or surpass the 200 assist threshold in a season.

PUT IT IN THE PAINT
UCI has outscored their opponents by 378 points when scoring in the paint (UCI 1,268, Opp. 890). The Anteaters average 38.4 points in the paint per game and have scored 40 or more points in 12 games so far (Occidental--68, Pepperdine--48, Rice--44, South Dakota--72,  UC Riverside--40, Cal State Bakersfield--40, Cal Poly--40, Hawai'i--62, UC Santa Barbara--44, Cal Poly--48, Cal State Fullerton--40, and Long Beach State--42).

IMPROVEMENT FROM THE CHARITY STRIPE
UC Irvine has become focused at the free throw line and will enter Tuesday's game with a 0.755 free throw percentage (499-661) and 0.793 (329-415) in Big West games. The Anteaters rose 150 spots in the national rankings for free throw percentage since the start of league play (was 195 prior to Dec. 28) and are currently 45th, the highest ranked Big West team in this category. 

ANTEATER IN RARE TERRITORY
With his 11 assists in the March 7th victory over Cal Poly, Pierre Crockrell II joined Raimonds Miglinieks (1994-95, 1995-96) as the second ever Anteater in program history to distribute 200 or more assists in a season.

DISHIN' DIMES
Pierre Crockrell II has led the Anteaters in 28 contests this season in assists with 212 total. The fifth year guard is averaging 6.4 assists per game and earned his 700th career dime against Long Beach State on Mar. 15. Crockrell II nationally ranks ninth in total assists, 11th in assists per game, and 26th in assist-turnover ratio. He also has 58 more assists on the season than the next best person in the conference. The guard recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and 11 assists against Long Beach State (Mar. 2). The Anteaters are 16-7 when Crockrell II dishes out five or more dimes in a game and were 15-3 in 2022-23 when he hit the same mark. 

THIS JUST-IN!
Justin Hohn is a UC Irvine squad leader with 420 total points and 12.7 points per game after his first career 20-point game at No. 16/20 USC with his 25 point outing, his second at Utah State with 21 points, and recently had his third against CSUN on Jan. 27 with 22 points. The redshirt senior has 40 double figure scoring games in his career, the most of any player on the Anteater squad, and went on a 13 game double figure scoring stretch (Nov. 22-Jan.18). Hohn reached 900 career points in his 19-point performance on March 15th versus Long Beach State.

SEEING DOUBLE
Devin Tillis notched the Anteaters first double-double of the season on Saturday night (Nov. 11) with an 18 point and 10 rebound showing. In the victory over UC Riverside on Dec. 28, Tillis posted his second double double of the season behind 10 points and 10 rebounds. The redshirt sophomore closed out the regular season with his third double double of the season with a 13 point and 10 rebound effort at Cal State Fullerton (Mar. 11). Tillis recorded three double-double efforts last season and earned the program's first since Mar. 15, 2023. The forward has recorded double-figure scoring in 12 games and double figure rebounding in five games played this season to lead UCI with 194 rebounds, 6.1 per game. 

THE ANDRE SPECIAL
Andre Henry has helped the Anteaters get it done on both ends of the court this season. From three-point range, Henry is shooting the team's best percentages 48-113 (0.425) and is a top shooter at the free throw line with his 61 makes (61-78, 0.782). The senior has stolen the ball from opponents 26 times and is one of four players with 120+ rebounds on the year.

MR. POSTMAN
Bent Leuchten dominates at the post whether it is scoring baskets or grabbing the ball off the glass. The center returned to action for the Anteaters on Dec. 16 and is one of the teams leaders off the glass, averaging 4.5 rebounds a game in 27 contests played. Leucthen has posted 11 double-figure scoring games since this year, the latest versus Long Beach State (Mar. 15) where he put up 10 points. 

LEAN MEAN DEAN MACHINE
Fifth year senior Dean Keeler as an impact off the bench for UCI. On the defensive side, Keeler is second on the team with 162 total rebounds on the year (4.9 per game) and is the squad's leader in blocks (33). Playing offense, the forward has posted five double figure scoring efforts on the season including a career high 22 points on 9-11 shooting against South Dakota. Keeler notched his first double double of the season and his career against CSUN (Jan. 27) with 12 points and a career best 14 rebounds.

CENTER OF ATTENTION
Freshman Carter Welling made his Anteater debut versus Pepperdine on Nov. 21 and has started in ten contests. Averaging 13.8 minutes a game, the center has grabbed 3.5 rebounds per game, blocked 30 shots, and is putting up 7.1 points a game after posting a career high 14-point performance versus the Rainbow Warriors on Feb. 3. In the win at Hawai'i on Jan. 11, Welling was efficient in his 10 minutes on the floor going a perfect 5-5 from the floor and drew the and-1 call on his first career made three-pointer. The center has posted seven double figure scoring performances of the season and has made 98 trips to the charity stripe, a team high (77-98, 0.786). Lastly, C. Welling recorded his 200th career point against Cal Poly (Mar. 7)

TURKISH DELIGHT
Derin Saran is third on the team in scoring with 9.9 points per game over 30 games played and has one of the best shooting percentages on the Anteater squad (0.502, 117-233). Saran went on an eight game double figure scoring streak ranging from Nov. 17-Dec. 16 an notched his 200th career point at Cal Poly (Feb. 1) on a career high tying 17 point performance. The young guard also has 100 rebounds, 51 assists, and 27 steals on the year.

THREE-HEADED BEAST IN THE CENTER
The big men down low of Bent Leuchten, Dean Keeler, and Carter Welling pose a threat both in the defensive and offensive paint. The three headed monster combined to average 21.9 points, 12.9 boards and 3.4 blocks per game.

KENPOM LEADERS
Out of 2258 eligible players, Pierre Crockrell II is second in assist rate (43.9) and Devin Tillis is 37th in two-point percentage (0.664). Out of 362 teams, UC Irvine ranks eighth in two-point percentage defense (0.442), 11th in effective field goal percentage defense (0.459), 20th in bench minutes (40.1), 40th in adjusted defensive efficiency (99.1), and 50th in free throw percentage offense (0.755).

LEADING THE BIG WEST
Several Anteaters sit in the top ten of the Big West individual statistical rankings: rebounds per game (7th, 6.1--Tillis), free throw percentage (9th, C. Welling--0.786 and 10th, C. Leuchten--0.785), assists per game (1st, 6.4--Crockrell II), assist-turnover ratio (2nd, 2.9--Crockrell II), and blocks per game (6th, Leuchten--1.1, 8th, C. Welling and 10th, Keeler--1.0).

NATIONAL STATISTICS THROUGH 3.17.24
UC Irvine is ranked top-50 nationally in field goal percentage defense (27th, 0.408), scoring margin (29th, 9.9), field goal percentage (30th, 0.478), assists per game (42nd, 15.7), rebound margin (40th, 4.9), and  free throw percentage (45th, 0.755).

NET WORTH
The first NET ranking of the season was released on Monday Dec. 4. The 'Eaters are the highest ranked and only Big West team within the top-100 sitting at 77 with UC San Diego locking in the second position at 120.