Sevilla leads the way as Aggie men rally to down Cal State Bakersfield in Big West men's basketball
Freshman Jalen Stokes adds key points down the stretch to preserve crucial win
BAKERSFIELD - Connor Sevilla had 27 points and some clutch foul shooting down the stretch as the UC Davis men rallied late to defeat Cal State Bakersfield, 80-72, Saturday afternoon before a gathering of 768 at the Icardo Center.
The win, after a disappointing Thursday night loss at Cal State Northridge, moves the Aggies to 6-5 in league play and 13-9 overall. Bakersfield, which had beaten the Aggies four straight times over three seasons, is now 2-9 and 8-15.
“The ‘W’ is what matters,” said a relieved Aggie head coach Jim Les, who admitted that the long bus ride home would now be a lot more pleasant.
“I thought when we had to get stops, we got them, plus some tough, big-time rebounds. The resilience of our guys was impressive. We have to set a tone on defense that’s going to be the difference in our season going down the stretch.”
Freshman Jalen Stokes made the most of his first start, with 13 points, including 7 of 8 from the foul line along with five rebounds, an assist and a steal. He had five points in the final three minutes as the Aggies gradually pulled away to enjoy their biggest lead of the night at the end.
“We definitely really wanted this one badly, especially after the loss to Northridge,” said Stokes.
“It was great to come out and do what the team needs. We’re a very tight-knit group.”
After a back-and-forth first half, the Aggies led, 36-35, at the break, but Bakersfield quickly took control early in the second half, taking a 54-49 lead before UCD rallied.
A 3-pointer from Isaiah Chappell gave the Aggies the lead for good at 64-62, then Sevilla hit 6 of 6 free throws and pulled down two defensive rebounds in the final 52 seconds to wrap things up.
Sevilla was hot all afternoon, hitting 7 of 11 from the field, including 4 of 7 from long range, while converting all nine free throw attempts.
Carl Daughtery added 13 points for UCD.
With nine games to go in the Big West regular season, the Aggies come home Thursday at 6 p.m. against UC Santa Barbara, then host Cal Poly at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
Reach Bob Dunning at bobdunning@thewaryone.com