Championships Central >>>
| No. 2 seed UC Santa Barbara 72, No. 4 seed Cal State Fullerton 62 |
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UCSB presser |
CSF presser
HENDERSON, Nev. -- No. 2 seed UC Santa Barbara outlasted No. 4 seed Cal State Fullerton 72-62 in the 2023 Big West Championship title game to win its second title in three seasons and fifth overall at The Dollar Loan Center. The Gauchos had previously won the title in 2002, 2010, 2011 and 2021.
UC Santa Barbara, The Big West co-champions of the regular season, increases its win streak to seven and improves to 27-7 overall. The Titans drop to 20-13 overall.
Ajay Mitchell, The Big West Player of the Year, scored 20 points and dished out four assists to lead the Gauchos and was named the Tournament MVP. Calvin Wishart contributed 16 points, seven rebounds and four assists, and Cole Anderson put away 12 points with three treys. Miles Norris, who was named to the All-Tournament Team, pitched in 10 points. UC Santa Barbara was hot from the perimeter, hitting 41.2 percent (7-of-17) of shots from 3-point range.
Max Jones, Tory San Antonio and Latrell Wrightsell Jr. had 18, 15 and 15 points, respectively, for the Titans. San Antonio and Wrightsell Jr. were named to the All-Tournament Team.
Neither team built a clear advantage for the first 35 minutes in a back-and-forth game that featured 16 lead changes and six ties. The biggest lead in that time frame for the Titans was six points, 9-3, at the 16:29 mark in the first half and an eight-point margin in favor of the Gauchos, 45-37, with 12:11 left in the game. Both leads were erased with the other team eventually grabbing the advantage.
With a one-point lead, 55-54, with five minutes remaining, the Gauchos went on a 17-8 run down the stretch, with eight points coming from Wishart and six points from Mitchell.
UC Santa Barbara went into halftime up 33-31. The first 20 minutes featured 10 lead changes. Neither team led by more than six points in the first period.
The Gauchos will learn their postseason destination on Selection Sunday, when the 2023 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship bracket is revealed on CBS at 3 p.m. PT.
Big West All-Tournament Team:
Dawson Baker, UC Irvine
Flynn Cameron, UC Riverside
Ajay Mitchell, UC Santa Barbara (MVP)
Miles Norris, UC Santa Barbara
Tory San Antonio, Cal State Fullerton
Latrell Wrightsell, Cal State Fullerton
Gallery: (3-11-2023) 2023 All-Tournament Team (MBB)