Connor Sevilla catches fire in the second half as Aggie men overcome Cal Poly, 67-58, in Big West basketball showdown
Aggies win third straight and continue to move up the standings with gutty second-half comeback
“It’s find a way February,” enthused UC Davis head coach Jim Les after his men’s basketball team rallied in the second half for a dramatic 67-58 Big West Conference win over Cal Poly before a crowd of 1,521 Saturday afternoon at the University Credit Union Center.
“I thought we gutted out a win and battled through some tough stretches with a winning effort,” Les added.
“Things don’t always go your way and our shots weren’t falling, even though we had some good looks, but we found some different ways to win. I’m really proud of how our guys did it today.”
The win, UCD’s third straight, moves the Aggies to 8-5 in the Big West and 15-9 overall. Poly, which beat the Aggies, 84-78, last month in San Luis Obispo, falls to 5-8 and 9-16.
The Aggies have yet to sew up one of the eight berths up for grabs in the season-ending Big West tournament next month in Henderson, Nevada, but this moves them one giant step closer with seven games remaining in the regular season.
“It was really an unbelievable effort down the stretch,” Les went on.
“Good teams find ways to win games when things are tough. As we move up in the standings, teams are going to bring their ‘A’ game against us and we have to be ready.”
Connor Sevilla was held scoreless in the first half and sat out the final nine minutes before intermission with three fouls, but he made up for it with a gutty performance in the second half.
After Cal Poly took a 44-36 lead, Sevilla led an Aggie charge that included an 11-0 run to give UCD a 58-54 lead with just under five minutes remaining.
Sevilla hit five 3-pointers down the stretch, several from NBA range, and scored all of his 19 points in the second half.
“I was frustrated when I went out so early with three fouls, but it was a blessing in disguise because all that time on the bench gave me fresh legs and I was able to get to my spots more quickly,” Sevilla explained.
“Every day we come in with the same mentality, to play for each other.”
With the Aggies clinging to a 60-58 lead, Sevilla provided the dagger with a long-range bomb for a 63-58 advantage with 1:22 remaining. He then iced things with two free throws with 44.3 seconds remaining.
“He’s steady and his demeanor never changes,” said Les of Sevilla.
“He did it on both ends of the floor today.”
The Aggies dominated the offensive boards in the second half, creating several second-chance opportunities that helped to put the game away.
Marcus Wilson led all scorers with 24 points, including 7 of 8 from the foul line as UCD went 15 of 17 from the stripe.
UCD returns to Big West action Thursday at 7 p.m. at UC San Diego, then comes home Saturday, Feb. 14, for a 2 p.m. battle with Long Beach State.
Reach Bob Dunning at bobdunning@thewaryone.com
Sevilla at the point late in the game in the 1-4 offense was a key. Frosh Marcus Wilson has made amazing strides and is an elite Big West talent. I just hope he doesn’t portal out!