Newcomers Shine for UC Santa Barbara Men’s Basketball in 96-47 Rout of San Francisco State

Even the most fervent UC Santa Barbara men’s basketball fans needed a roster for the Gauchos season opener against San Francisco State.

Eight UC Santa Barbara players made their Thunderdome debuts as the Gauchos overwhelmed the visiting Gators with their talented depth in a 96-47 victory on Monday night.

“I thought it was a really good opening night. I thought for us we needed to play in front of a crowd. We had two closed door scrimmages, in which we haven’t been able to play in front of anybody,” said UC Santa Barbara coach Joe Pasternak. “It was important to get the nerves out.”

The runaway victory was built on a foundation of sound fundamental defense and relentless effort. San Francisco State shot 24.3 percent from the field and 16.7 percent from three-point range.

The Gauchos opened up with a big and physically imposing starting lineup consisting of Stephan Swenson, Cole Anderson, Jason Fontenet II, Colin Smith and Kenny Pohto. That group set the tone defensively and the steady stream of reserves that entered the game followed suit.

“With the depth we have it allows us to demand that they play hard and defend,” Pasternak said. “I’m really proud of the effort today of guys just coming in and out and really just competing at a championship level defensively, playing really hard.”

A sloppy start offensively allowed San Francisco State to keep the game close in the early going, but the Gauchos quickly found a rhythm and took control of the game.

A layup followed by a mid-range jumper by Ben Shtolzberg on back-to-back possessions put the Gauchos ahead 19-10 at the 11:16 mark of the first half. Shtolzberg was a bright spot off the bench with nine points on 4-for-6 shooting from the field.

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UC Santa Barbara broke the game open late in the first half as a three-pointer by Swenson extended the lead to 30-17 with 3:14 remaining in the first half. Swenson knocked down 3-of-6 shots from the floor and connected on 2-of-5 shots from three-point range. He finished with ten points, five assists and just one turnover.

“The amount of weapons we have just facilitates my job in a way where all I need to do is get the ball to one, two, three sides and we get whatever we want on offense,” Swenson said. “Then defensively we know that we have each other’s back.”

A three-pointer by the Vanderbilt transfer Colin Smith extended the UC Santa Barbara lead to 40-20 with 40 seconds remaining in the first half. Smith is coming off an Achilles injury and relishes the opportunity to be back on the court and producing for the team.

“Having the fans there was a big boost first game of the season,” Smith said. “I felt good moving around. I didn’t have anything hurting at all. I was happy to be back out there.”

Freshman Zion Sensley and Zachiah Clark were able to display their talents with extended run in the second half. Sensley finished with eleven points and five rebounds. Clark scored seven points on 3-for-3 shooting from the field.

The Gauchos will play at Portland on Saturday, November 9. Tip off is set for 3 p.m. at the Chiles Center.