UC Irvine Fails Test at Utah

SALT LAKE CITY — It was supposed to be a measure of progress, an early-season test that would prove this would not be another season of only six or seven victories.

UC Irvine didn’t really need to beat Utah Tuesday night at the Huntsman Center, but a 92-66 thumping wasn’t what they had in mind, either.

“We expected to be a helluva lot more representative,” said Irvine Coach Rod Baker. “We’re not ready to bail out. It just means that we have a lot more work to do.”

What the Anteaters (1-1) need most is to figure out how to score. They were so cold that some of the 12,581 Ute fans might have been tempted to pass down their parkas. Snow fell outside and bricks fell inside.

Baker lamented his team’s lack of aggressiveness on the boards and its inability to keep Utah (2-0) from scoring outside, but Irvine took eight more shots than Utah and attempted two more free throws. The difference? Irvine shot 34% from the field and 64% from the free-throw line. The Utes shot 53% from the floor and 81% from the line.

“We thought we could win this game,” Irvine guard Lloyd Mumford said. “This is one of the most disappointing losses for me ever.”

Irvine fell behind, 10-2, then fought back to tie the score, 10-10. They trailed again, 21-14, and then battled to pull within 21-19. But they ran out of catchup midway through the first half when the Utes went on a 19-0 run. Utah led at the half, 54-29.

The Anteaters scored the first 10 points of the second half and reduced the deficit to 13 points at 56-43, but Utah regrouped and kept at least a 15-point margin the rest of the way.

“It was just a long, long way to go by then,” Baker said.

Keith Van Horn, a freshman forward from Diamond Bar, made nine of 12 field goals and eight of 12 free throws to lead the Utes with 27 points. He also had 10 rebounds. Khalid Channell, making his first start, Jermaine Avie and DeForrest Boyer each scored 14 points for Irvine. Boyer had 14 rebounds and Avie had 11.