Cancun, Mexico -- UC Irvine couldn't get the offense going in a 45-57 loss to New Mexico State in the second game of the Cancun Challenge at the Hard Rock Riviera Maya.

UCI scored a season-low 45 points for the game on a season-low 26.7% shooting from the floor (12-45) and 2-16 (12.5%) from three-point distance. Despite the offensive troubles, UCI held NMSU to just 57 points which are the second fewest scored by an opponent this season and a 18-48 (37.5%) mark from the field and 12.5% (2-16) from beyond the arc.

HEAD COACH RUSSELL TURNER SAID:
"Tough game for our team. Credit to New Mexico State. They won tonight very much like we have often won. They ground us down, frustrated us with their defensive intensity, execution and rebounding, They were able to break the game and wear us out in a combination of physicality and continued defensive intensity. I think we could have won the game the same way that they did tonight despite our poor offensive performance, I've got to do a better job helping this team because we are not emerging at this stage against the difficult competition we have, the way I'd like to be this time of the year. We need better performances from more guys. Our point guard play was especially young looking, but they weren't the only ones who played poorly. We were missing a lot of experience at the power forward position compared to past years. I've got to get our guys to play better and I know that we can, but that won't be easy. The nature of this is hard. It was disappointing to see my guys miss as many layups and free throws as we missed. We are going to get better, but we have a long way to go. I hope our fans will stay with us as this team develops because we will develop."

INSIDE THE NUMBERS
> UC Irvine was led by guard Derin Saran, who had 16 points, nine on free throws. He also had two rebounds and two assists
>Guard Jurian Dixon added 10 points, three rebounds and three steals
>Forward Kyle Evans led the team in rebounds with six while recording five points and two blocks
>Elijah Choal chipped in four points and four rebounds  
> New Mexico State and UCI combined for 39 turnovers, with NMSU committing 21 and the Anteaters totaling a season-high 18
>New Mexico State committed 26 fouls, a season-high for an UCI opponent. The Anteaters got to the line 29 times, making 19 (65.5%)
>The Aggies improve to 5-0 behind Jemel Jones' team-high 12 points

FIRST HALF
>UC Irvine ran the offense through Derin Saran early, opening a 4-3 lead with a pair of free throws and assist to Kyle Evans
> After a short scoring drought that allowed New Mexico State to take an 8-4 lead, Jurian Dixon got to the line for the Anteaters and sank an attempt (15:34)
>UCI drew six fouls in the first five minutes of play, resulting in a nearly 15-minute long bonus free throws for the Anteaters
>Tama Isaac jumper gave the Anteaters their second field goal of the game (13:00), 7-12
>While the Anteaters struggled, NMSU went on a 9-3 run to open up their largest lead at 16-7 with 11:28 to go in the half
>UCI would find its footing, turning offense into defense and going on a 6-0 run powered by steals and stops leading to easy baskets at the rim and free throws by Dixon, Jovan Jester Jr. and Harrison Carrington, 13-16 (8:22)
>Saran provided more offense with a jumper and more free throws propelling a personal 7-0 run by the guard to give the Anteaters a 20-19 lead (3:11)
>The lead was short-lived as New Mexico State closed the half on a 7-0 run to take a 26-20 lead into the break

SECOND HALF
>UCI's defense continued to keep the Anteaters close, holding NMSU to just two points through the first six minutes of the half, while the Anteaters scored six on baskets by Dixon, Elijah Chol and Jester Jr. to close the gap to just 28-26 with 15:06 left in regulation
>The offensive struggles persisted for both squads, with only 18 points scored between the two in the first 10 minutes of the half, resulting in a 35-29 Aggie lead
>Down by six (29-35), UCI mounted a comeback on two free throws by Chol, a three-pointer from Saran then the second of two free throw attempts from Saran to tie the game at 35 (8:29)
>The Aggies answered with the next nine points to move the advantage back out to 44-35 with 6:23 remaining
>Back-to-back NMSU baskets extended the lead to double-digits (40-51) with just over three minutes to go
>The Aggies would go on to win 57-45 

NOTES
>UCI drops its third straight game and goes to 3-4 overall and 0-2 in the Challenge
>The Anteaters were out-rebounded 42-25, a season-low in rebounds for UCI

UP NEXT
UCI closes out the Challenge against South Dakota State tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. PT