Saturday, August 22
New Taipei City
2:00 AM PDT
UC Irvine
96
vs
71
Chinese Taipei Blue
Photo by: Jake Hamlin
UC Irvine Fires From Deep in 96-71 Semifinal Win
August 22, 2026 | Men's Basketball
NEW TAIPEI CITY, Taiwan – UC Irvine men's basketball advanced to the championship matchup with a high-scoring 96-71 victory over Chinese Taipei Blue at the 45th William Jones Cup.
Each team had impressive shooting nights making over 40% from the field and putting in double-digit threes. UCI made 14 of 26 from distance and hit 18 free throws to keep pace with a Chinese Taipei Blue team that scored the most points of any UCI opponent in this tournament.
Full Game Highlights
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
>Tama Isaac led all scorers with 21 points hitting all four of his three-point attempts and all five from the line and he matched a game-high with seven assists
>Mason Hodges impressed with 18 points, second-most in the game, hitting six of seven shots and four from deep. He added four rebounds and a game-high three steals
>Other double-digits providers were Harrison Carrington with 11 points to go with eight rebounds and two steals, and Bryce Goldman putting up 10 points with two three-pointers
>Nes Emeneke led all with 14 rebounds and two blocks
>Torian Lee did his damage from the line en route to eight points and added three assists and two steals
>Chinese Taipei Blue had three in double-figures led by 17 from Chun-Yen Kuo and a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds by Samuel Ofa Manu.
The first quarter was even 19-19 with both teams trading barbs early on. Tama Isaac nailed an opening-possession three to start a 10-0 run, but Chinese Taipei responded with a run through the rest of the quarter helped by five made threes.
The second quarter was an onslaught with 55 points between the sides and 11 alone coming from Tama Isaac.and assisting on three others. UCI's largest lead of eight evaporated to a 34-34 tie. The 'Eaters fired up six threes in the second quarter alone with a pair from Isaac and Mason Hodges, and Nils Cooper drained one at the buzzer for a 50-43 UCI lead.
The Anteaters pulled away in the third quarter outscoring Chinese Taipei Blue by 13 points to lead at the end of the quarter, 75-55. UCI spread the wealth around with nine different scorers. Six different 'Eaters made seven steals and Nes Emeneke patrolled the boards with five rebounds.
UCI's fourth quarter was steady led by six more points from Mason Hodges, buckets from five others, and points from six with the Anteaters closing out a 96-71 win to send them to the championship matchup.
The 'Eaters take on Wonju DB New Generation from South Korea for the championship match on August 23 with 4:00 a.m. tip-off Irvine time and 7:00 p.m. local time.
Each team had impressive shooting nights making over 40% from the field and putting in double-digit threes. UCI made 14 of 26 from distance and hit 18 free throws to keep pace with a Chinese Taipei Blue team that scored the most points of any UCI opponent in this tournament.
Full Game Highlights
INSIDE THE NUMBERS
>Tama Isaac led all scorers with 21 points hitting all four of his three-point attempts and all five from the line and he matched a game-high with seven assists
>Mason Hodges impressed with 18 points, second-most in the game, hitting six of seven shots and four from deep. He added four rebounds and a game-high three steals
>Other double-digits providers were Harrison Carrington with 11 points to go with eight rebounds and two steals, and Bryce Goldman putting up 10 points with two three-pointers
>Nes Emeneke led all with 14 rebounds and two blocks
>Torian Lee did his damage from the line en route to eight points and added three assists and two steals
>Chinese Taipei Blue had three in double-figures led by 17 from Chun-Yen Kuo and a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds by Samuel Ofa Manu.
The first quarter was even 19-19 with both teams trading barbs early on. Tama Isaac nailed an opening-possession three to start a 10-0 run, but Chinese Taipei responded with a run through the rest of the quarter helped by five made threes.
The second quarter was an onslaught with 55 points between the sides and 11 alone coming from Tama Isaac.and assisting on three others. UCI's largest lead of eight evaporated to a 34-34 tie. The 'Eaters fired up six threes in the second quarter alone with a pair from Isaac and Mason Hodges, and Nils Cooper drained one at the buzzer for a 50-43 UCI lead.
The Anteaters pulled away in the third quarter outscoring Chinese Taipei Blue by 13 points to lead at the end of the quarter, 75-55. UCI spread the wealth around with nine different scorers. Six different 'Eaters made seven steals and Nes Emeneke patrolled the boards with five rebounds.
UCI's fourth quarter was steady led by six more points from Mason Hodges, buckets from five others, and points from six with the Anteaters closing out a 96-71 win to send them to the championship matchup.
The 'Eaters take on Wonju DB New Generation from South Korea for the championship match on August 23 with 4:00 a.m. tip-off Irvine time and 7:00 p.m. local time.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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