The UC Santa Barbara men’s basketball team pulled away from visiting Long Beach State in overtime to capture an 84–77 victory in the Big West Conference opener for both teams on Thursday night.
With point guard Miro Little leaving the game early due to injury, Aidan Mahaney scored a game-high 26 points, including a perfect 11-for-11 from the free-throw line—his highest-scoring performance since transferring to UCSB from UConn this past offseason.
“Our guys really battled until the end. Every conference game is a battle, it’s a war, and I’m really proud of our guys’ resiliency without Miro Little, our point guard, in the game,” said UCSB coach Joe Pasternak. “We had to adjust on the fly.”
Colin Smith found his rhythm for UCSB down the stretch after a slow start. He finished with 18 points after shooting 10-for-11 from the free-throw line. The Gauchos were 32-for-38 from the line overall.
Long Beach State freshman Gavin Sykes knocked down two three-pointers in the final 24 seconds to tie the score at 67–67 and send the game to overtime.
However, UCSB dominated the extra session, with a mid-range jumper by Mahaney at the 4:29 mark setting the tone and giving the Gauchos a 69-67 lead.
With UCSB clinging to a 73-72 lead midway through overtime, Smith delivered a three-pointer that extended the advantage to 76-72. The Gauchos went on to secure the victory at the free-throw line.
Sophomore Zion Sensley started the game and continued his strong play with 14 points and five rebounds. He knocked down 4-of-7 attempts from behind the three-point arc.
With the victory, UCSB improves to 7-2 overall and 1-0 in the Big West. The Gauchos will host Cal State Bakersfield in a conference contest on Saturday at 6 p.m.
Women’s Basketball
UCSB 67, Long Beach State 52
Zoe Borter and Jessica Grant combined for 29 points as the Gauchos cruised to a double-digit road win in their Big West Conference opener.
UCSB knocked down 14-of-28 attempts from three-point range and improved to 7-1 overall with the win.
