SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – The UC Santa Barbara Men's Basketball team (13-10) was back in The Thunderdome for another Big West contest, taking on the Matadors of CSUN. Despite Ajay Mitchell's phenomenal offensive performance, the Gauchos couldn't get the lead over the Matadors as UC Santa Barbara lost 74-82 to CSUN.  
 
FROM HEAD COACH JOE PASTERNACK
"We need to be better."
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Gauchos were the first to score, but their lead didn't last for long. The Matadors picked up their defense, holding the Gauchos to 27 percent from the field for the first 10 minutes of the game. Even though the Gauchos worked to pick up the pace, they weren't able to come back at the end of the first half as they headed to the locker room with a score of 39-31.
 
From there, the Matadors kept moving forward, going on a 6-0 run over early in the second half. With eight minutes left to go, UC Santa Barbara picked up the pace, getting within three with less than a minute to go. That's when the Gauchos started sending the Matadors to the free throw line as they made five straight while UC Santa Barbara couldn't make a shot from the field. Because of this, the Gauchos ended up losing to the Matadors 74-82.  
 
LOOKING AT THE NUMBERS

• Ajay Mitchell led all players on the court tonight in scoring. He cranked out 29 points while making 12 of his 13 shots from the charity stripe. He also added on a game-high seven assists along with two steals and a block.
• Kilian Brockhoff led the team tonight in rebounds as he grabbed six. He was also tied for second on the team in points with nine, with all of those points coming from beyond the arc.
• Jason Fontenet II helped out on offense. His night ended with eight points while racking up three assists.

UP NEXT
The Gauchos will hit the road to start off their weekend of games as they take on the Tritons of UC San Diego. Tip-off will be at 7 p.m. with a live stream available through ESPN+.