California Irvine Athletics

IRVINE, Calif. -- The Anteaters will play their last game inside of the Bren Events Center this season, hosting UAB in the NIT quarterfinals, for a chance to make a trip to Indianapolis for a spot in the semifinals.

UAB at [1] UC Irvine
Wednesday, Mar. 26 | 6:00 p.m. PT
Bren Events Center | Irvine, Calif.
Live Stats | Watch (ESPN2) | Tickets | UC Irvine Game Notes | UAB Game Notes

ABOUT UAB
> UAB enters the contest with a 24-12 overall record and finished 13-5 in the American Athletic Conference standings
> The Blazers have gone 4-1 in their last five outings with the lone loss to AAC's automatic NCAA qualifier in Memphis in the conference tournament final
> UAB's longest win streak of the season came between Jan. 4-Jan. 21, winning three at home and two on the road
>  The Blazers finished their non-conference schedule with an 11-7 record, 2-1 on the road and 3-3 at neutral site locations
> Their two non-conference road wins happened in the NIT
> Both of the Blazers NIT results have ended in a four-point margin (at Saint Joseph's, 69-65, and at Santa Clara, 88-84)
> UAB has four players averaging double figures
> Yaxel Lendeborg paces the Blazer offense with 17.8 points per game while pulling down 11.2 rebounds a contest
> Lendeborg connects 52.6 percent of his shots from the floor (233-443) and makes and takes the most free throws of any UAB player (151-199, 0.759)
> Additionally, Lendeborg is the team leader in assists (153), blocks (66), and steals (63)
> Christian Coleman is next up in the scoring department at 11.3 points per game behind 54 percent shooting from the field  (168-314, 0.535)
> Coleman grabs 6.9 boards a game and has blocked 27 shots, the team's second-best mark in both categories
> Both Ja'Borri McGhee and Alejandro Vasquez score 11.1 points per game
> McGhee is the third player on the team shooting over 50 percent total (150-288, 0.521), has the best three-point percentage on the team (29-67, 0.433), and is second in both assists (102) and steals (38)
> Tony Toney doesn't go to the line often, but when he does he is an efficient 91.4 percent (32-35)
> Tyren Moore has take and made the most three-pointers of any Blazer with 55 makes (55-143, 0.385)
> Efrem Johnson (48) and Toney (46) are close to joining Moore with 50 makes from long-range

UC IRVINE POSTSEASON HISTORY IN THE NIT
UC Irvine clinched their ninth postseason appearance in the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) as an automatic bid and their first ever No. 1 seed ranking for the Irvine Region. The Anteaters hold a 4-8 record in the tournament. UCI makes their third consecutive appearance in the postseason invitational and it is the first time where they are making three straight trips.

WINNING IN THE NIT
With the 66-61 victory over Jacksonville State on Sunday (Mar. 23) in the second round of the NIT, UC Irvine earned their fourth ever win in the postseason tournament and was their first time winning multiple games in the same season. The Anteaters other two wins in the NIT came on Mar. 12, 1982 to San Diego State (W, 70-69) and Mar. 13, 1986 to UCLA (W, 80-74), both in the first round.

REPPING THE BIG WEST
UC Irvine, who won two straight games in the NIT, became the first Big West school to advance to the quarterfinals of the postseason tournament since Fresno State did so in 1985 when they eventually claimed the title. The last Big West school to win two games in the NIT was Cal State Fullerton in 2005 doing so in the opening round and then first round.

AND THEN THERE WAS ONE 
With a winning result against Jacksonville State on Sunday, 66-61, UC Irvine became the last No. 1 seed remaining in the NIT as the other three top seeds fell in their respective games on Saturday (Mar. 22) and Sunday (Mar. 23).

IN THE HUNT: 31-WIN SEASON
Currently holding a 30-6 record on the season, UC Irvine has earned their second 30-win season in program history and second under head coach Russell Turner. One more victory would tie the school record for wins in a season (31) as it was set by the 2018-19 squad.

RARE AIR (30 WINS)
As they earned their 30th win of the season on Sunday, UC Irvine joined UC San Diego as the second team in the league to reach that mark. The Big West became the second conference to have multiple 30 win teams this season meeting the SEC (Florida 32-4 and Auburn 30-5) in this feat. On the coaching side of things, head coach Russell Turner is one of 32 active Division I coaches that have multiple 30-win seasons with 21 of them completing their multiples all at the Division I level. Diving further, four of the 32 coaches completed the feat at mid-major schools and three of the four are currently at the mid-major level (Bryce Drew--Grand Canyon/Valprasio, Turner--UC Irvine, and Ben Jacobson--UNI).

NICE TO MEET YOU
UCI has not met UAB in program history. The Blazers are one of five teams on UCI's schedule that the Anteaters have not faced before with the others being Northern Iowa, Kennesaw State, Towson, and Jacksonville State. UC Irvine is 7-1 over the last two seasons when facing an opponent for the first time and 4-0 in 2024-25.

BATTLE OF THE BOARDS
Two strong rebounding teams in UC Irvine and Jacksonville State go head-to-head on Sunday evening. Both teams are strong off the defensive glass, as UCI pulls down 28.74 defensive boards a game, fifth in the nation, and Jax State grabs the nation's 20th best mark of 27.48. The Gamecocks also hold a 5.5 mark in rebounding margin which is 29th in the nation while the Anteaters land 55th nationally at 4.2.

THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE ARE FREE
The Anteaters have been sharp at the free throw line this season with 602 makes in 747 attempts and leads the Big West in free throw percentage (0.806) which is also the nation's second best shooting clip at the line. UC Irvine went a perfect 13-13 at the charity stripe on Mar. 15 versus UC San Diego, their third time doing so this season (13-13 at Long Beach State on Jan. 30 and 14-14 vs. Pepperdine on Nov. 16).  UCI shot a season high 33-40 from the charity stripe on Dec. 5 in the win over Cal State Bakersfield. Additionally, UC Irvine has played 20 games where opponents to just single digit makes from the line, the last versus Northern Colorado (Mar. 19). In the national standings, Bent Leuchten ranks eighth in made free throws (195) and 12th in free throw attempts (237) while Myles Che is 32nd in free throw percentage (0.881). 

SHARING THE BALL WELL
UC Irvine dished out 26 assists on 34 made baskets in the win over Cal Poly (Mar. 14). It is just the sixth time this season where the Anteaters have dished out 20 or more assists in a game. The 'Eaters had their best assist rate game against CSUN on Feb. 20 with 86.4 percent of their baskets assisted (19-22). UCI is second in the Big West in both assists per game (15.72) and in conference games (16.00). Justin Hohn and Myles Che are the top distributors for the 'Eaters, combining to give UCI a 21-4 record when either one of them dishes out four or more assists a game (Hohn 12-4, Che 9-0). 

A CHANCE AT THE FREE THROWS MADE RECORD
As mentioned, the Anteaters have made 602 free throws so far this season. The 2024-25 squad is just 14 makes from the line away of tying the single season standard of 616 made at the stripe that was set in 1971-72 (616-873 in 28 games).

EFFICIENCY IN IRVINE
Bent Leuchten is one the Big West's most efficient player with a 29.2 grade, sitting second. Leuchten ranks first in offensive rating (131.2). The center also ranks second in defensive rating (90.3), offensive box plus/minus (6.2), and overall box plus/minus (9.2).

SINGLE SEASON REBOUNDING HEIGHTS
Senior Bent Leuchten has added another milestone onto his season as an Anteater with his 12 rebounds at UC Davis. Entering Wednesday's contest, Leuchten has 324 season rebounds which is third in the all-time single season rebounding ladder. The center is 14 boards away from matching Kevin Magee (337, 1980-81) for second. It is the first time in 43 years that an Anteater had 300 or more rebounds in a season (last was 353 in 1981-82).

PLACING IN THE SINGLE SEASON SCORING RANKS
With 552 points in 2024-25, Bent Leuchten has scored the most points in a single season since 2010-11 when Darren Moore poured in 544, the previous tenth all-time points scored in a single season with Jeff Herdman (1990-91). Leuchten is 19 points away from meeting Jerry Green (571, 2000-01) for ninth and 37 from catching Jeff Cunningham (589, 1968-69) for eighth.

HOHN HELPS POWER UC IRVINE TO 66-61 NIT VICTORY OVER JAX STATE
Justin Hohn posted a season-high 22 points to lead UC Irvine to a 66-61 victory over Jacksonville State in the second round of the National Invitational Tournament at the Bren Events Center Sunday evening.  UCI out-scored the Gamecocks 13-6 in the final 5:20 to pull away, taking advantage of the free throw line where the Anteaters were 7-7 and Jax State was 3-7. Hohn went 7-15 from the floor, matching his career-high with four three-pointers. He also went 4-5 from the line and grabbed three rebounds. UCI improved to 30-6, its second 30-win season in program history and second under the helm of head coach Russell Turner. The Anteaters are the just the eighth team in the nation to hit the milestone this season. Center Bent Leuchten scored 10 points, hitting 4-4 from the free throw line, and pulled down seven rebounds while guard Myles Che made three baskets, all three-pointers, and went 2-3 from the line for 11 points. Forward Devin Tillis grabbed a team-high nine rebounds and scored four points, all in the final five minutes.

THIS JUST-IN!
Justin Hohn is a UC Irvine squad leader with 430 total points and 12.3 points per game scoring. The graduate student has 65 double figure scoring games in his career, the most of any player on the Anteater squad, Hohn reached 1,300 career points in his 18-point outing versus UC San Diego on Mar. 15. The guard leads the Anteaters in both assists (128) and steals (50).

DOUBLE TROUBLE
Devin Tillis is a threat both on offense and defense for the Anteaters. The forward coverts at a high rate from the floor (177-330, 0.536) and has 23 double digit scoring games on the season. Additionally, Tillis is second on the squad in rebounds with 266 total (7.6 rpg). Tillis is second on the team with 11 career double-doubles, posting his fifth of the season versus Hawai'i on Jan. 25 (11 pts, 13 rebs).

THE GERMAN PAINTER
Bent Leuchten dominates at the post or in the paint whether it is scoring baskets or grabbing the ball off the glass. The center is the team's leader off the glass, averaging 9.0 rebounds a game in 36 contests played, and paces the scoring at 15.3 points per game. Leuchten has posted double-figure scoring games in 30 games this year, the latest versus Jax State (Mar. 23) where he put up 10 points. The German has scored at least 10 or more points or pulled down at least 10 or more rebounds in 31 of those contests. Additionally, Leuchten's career best 15 grabs off the glass against Pepperdine and reset against Belmont are an Anteater first in the 15-19 rebounds in a game category since Collin Welp pulled down 19 on the road at LMU on Dec. 17, 2020. The center is just one of seven players who have eight or more 20 point, 10 rebound efforts this season. 

CHE-SANITY
At the top of the formation for the Anteaters, Myles Che helps lead the distribution effort with his 92 total assists. Che adds to the scoring effort with his 12.1 points per game and recorded his first double digit scoring game in an Anteater uniform at Northern Iowa on Nov. 10 with his ten points. The guard had his 22nd double figure scoring effort of the season, 11 points in the NIT second round against Jax State (Mar. 23), after seeing his 13-game double figure scoring streak ended on Feb. 15. 

FITTING RIGHT IN
Redshirt freshman guard Jurian Dixon entered the UC Irvine starting lineup on Dec. 14 at Oregon State and has proved himself on both the offensive and defensive ends. The guard averages 8.5 points per game and 2.8 rebounds per game in 36 contests. Dixon continues to have career performances or break through nights, his latest at UC Santa Barbara (Mar. 8) with personal bests in points (23) and made free throws (9). 

BRICK WALL
The big men down low of Bent Leuchten, Kyle Evans, and Elijah Chol pose a threat in the defensive paint for opponents. The three trio combine to average 9.6 defensive rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game. All three big men have double figure blocks on the season: Leuchten (47), Evans (42), and Chol (20). In conference contests, the trio average 9.9 defensive rebounds and 3.2 blocks per game.

OLD RELIABLE
With a veteran team that has won multiple championships in the last few seasons, three UC Irvine veteran starters are averaging double figures. Bent Leuchten leads the way with 15.3, Devin Tillis behind at 13.2, and Justin Hohn next at 12.3. While not a veteran who has played their whole career at UC Irvine, Myles Che is the fourth player on the team to average double digits with 12.1 points.

1,000-POINT CLUB
Graduate student Justin Hohn etched his name into the UC Irvine record book as the 33rd Anteater to eclipse the 1,000-point mark. The guard reached this milestone in the victory over Towson (Nov. 30) and has 1,347 career tallies. Hohn begins his ascent in the ranks and is 38 points away from passing Will Davis II (1,384--2011-15) for 10th. Senior Bent Leuchten etched his name into the UC Irvine record book as the 34th Anteater to eclipse the 1,000-point mark. The center reached this milestone in the game against CSUN (Feb. 20) and has 1,133 career tallies. Leuchten begins his ascent in the ranks, sitting at 29th, and is four points away from surpassing Patrick Sanders (1,136--2004-08) for 28th, 13 from going ahead of Bill Moore (1,145--1969-72) for 27th, and 16 from moving in front of Tommy Rutherford (1,148--2016-20) for 26th. Additionally, redshirt senior Devin Tillis placed his name into the UC Irvine record book as the 35th Anteater to eclipse the 1,000-point mark and third player to do so this season. The forward reached this milestone in the game against Northern Colorado (Mar. 19) and has 1,022 career tallies. He is just 40 points away from reaching Jaron Martin (1,062--2013-17) for 34th. 

500-REBOUND MACHINES 
Redshirt senior Devin Tillis put his name into the UC Irvine record book as the 28th Anteater to reach the 500-rebound achievement. The forward reached this milestone in the win at California Baptist (Dec. 30) and has 673 career boards. Tillis continues his ascent in the ranks and is 13th in the all-time rebounding list, just 12 from meeting Tommy Rutherford (685, 2016-20) for 12th. Additionally, senior Bent Leuchten became the 29th Anteater to pull down 500 rebounds in their UCI career. The center accomplished this feat at UC Riverside (Jan. 23) and has 648 career rebounds. Leuchten lands 15th and is 23 boards away from chasing down Ben McDonald (670, 1980-84) for 14th.

STEALING THE LEAD
Guard Justin Hohn entered the top 10 in the program for steals with five takeaways at Cal Poly (Jan. 2). He ranks fifth with 147 in his career and needs eight more in order to move in front of Alex Young (154, 2012-16) for fourth.

THREE-POINT SNIPER
Justin Hohn placed his name in the record book for the third time this season, entering the top 10 in career made three-pointers made with his three triples against Hawai'i (Jan. 25). He is fifth with 203. Hohn needs 19 more three-pointers to reach assistant coach Michael Wilder (224, 2009-13) for fourth.

PUT IT IN THE PAINT
UCI has outscored their opponents by 254 points when scoring in the paint (UCI 1,196, Opp. 942). The Anteaters average 33.2 points in the paint per game and have scored 40 or more points in ten games so far (Chapman--42, at Northern Iowa--48, at Weber State--44, Kennesaw State--44, at Belmont--42, at California Baptist--46, at Cal Poly--42, Cal Poly--46, UC Santa Barbara--40, at UC Santa Barbara--50).

KENPOM LEADERS
Out of 2307 eligible players, Bent Leuchten is 13th in free throw rate (75.2), fouls drawn per 40 minutes (7.0), 29th in defensive rebound percentage (25.8), and 33rd in true shooting percentage (64.8). Out of 364 teams, UC Irvine ranks second in two-point percentage defense (43.0), second in free throw percentage offense (81.0), eight in free throw attempt/field goal attempt defense (22.3), 12th in block percentage offense (6.9), 13th in effective field goal percentage defense (46.1), 20th in adjusted efficiency defense (95.5), 22nd in assists per field goals made (60.5), 28th in average possession length defense (16.8), 40th in offensive rebound percentage defense (26.7), 43rd in free throw point distribution offense (21.8), and 49th in three-point point distribution defense (35.4). 

LEADING THE BIG WEST
Several Anteaters sit in the top ten of the Big West individual statistical rankings: scoring (9th, 15.3--Leuchten), rebounding (2nd, 9.0--Leuchten and 3rd, 7.6--Tillis), field goal percentage (4th, 0.547--Leuchten and 5th, 0.536--Tillis), free throw percentage (2nd, 0.881--Che and 6th, 0.823--Leuchten), three-point field goal percentage (6th, 0.372--Hohn), three-point field goals per game (9th, 2.0--Hohn), assists (5th, 3.7--Hohn), blocks (2nd, 1.3--Leuchten, 6th, 1.2--Evans, and 10th, 0.8--Chol), and steals (9th, 1.4--Hohn). 

NATIONAL STATISTICS THROUGH 03.24.25
UC Irvine is ranked top 50 nationally in free throw percentage (2nd, 80.6), defensive rebounds per game (5th, 28.67), field goal percentage defense (10th, 39.5), free throws made per game (23rd, 16.7), scoring margin (28th, 9.6), scoring defense (36th, 66.2), and rebounds per game (49th, 38.00).

NET WORTH
The first NET ranking of the season was released on Monday Dec. 2. The 'Eaters are the second highest ranked team in the Big West. UC San Diego tops the league at a 35 rank with the Anteaters next at 62.