Box Score SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif.– For the second straight game freshman guard Ajay Mitchell went for a career-high 25 points in the UCSB men's basketball team's 69-64 win over rival Cal Poly. The Gauchos, for the first time this year, have won three straight.
ON THE STAT SHEET
- After dropping 21 in Thursday's win in Bakersfield the rookie guard Mitchell decided to push the needle again scoring 25 points mainly by way of the free-throw where he went 11-for-12 drawing nine fouls in the game. He went 6-of-11 from the floor with a pair of threes, four rebounds, and an assist.
- Senior Amadou Sow had 16 points, 10 of which came in the second half, on 8-of-14 shooting to go with eight rebounds and two assists and steals.
- Junior Josh Pierre-Louis had a great performance scoring his most points since December and tying his career-high going 3-for-3 from deep. He had 14 points and led the team with four assists.
- All-in-all, the Gauchos and Mustangs were very close in most stat categories with UCSB outshooting its host 52.3% to 42.1% and going 9-for-17 from three compared to Cal Poly's 4-for-21 mark as being the biggest wins for the 'Chos.
HOW IT HAPPENED
First Half (33-28 UCSB)
- The early minutes favored the Mustangs who jumped out to a 10-0 lead which they held on to until under five minutes to go in the half when Miles Norris tied the game at 22-22 with one of his two threes. Pierre-Louis answered on the next trip down with a three of his own to give UCSB its first lead at 25-22.
- Mitchell kept the Gauchos in striking distance scoring nine of the Gauchos' first 13 points and ending the half with 13 himself.
- Sow knocked down a late shot to send the Gauchos into half time up 33-28.
Second Half (69-64 UCSB)
- The Gauchos' potent offense showed in the second half shooting 56.5% from the field and helping UCSB hold on to its lead throughout the period.
- The Mustangs brought the lead to within five on two separate runs but Mitchell, Pierre-Louis, and Norris continued to knock down big shots when called upon. Mitchell all but put the game away rattling in a step-back three-pointer with just over two minutes to go that made it an eight-point game at 60-52.
- In the final moments Mitchell found his way to the foul line to hit three free-throws giving him 11 in a row for the game before missing his first and only foul shot on his last attempt of the game.
UP NEXT
UCSB now returns home to host a pair of top Big West teams facing Cal State Fullerton Thursday night before welcoming Long Beach State to The Thunderdome Saturday night.
