Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
at UC Irvine
'Cats Beat Anteaters to Improve to 3-0
11/20/2011 4:01:00 AM | Men's Basketball
The Weber State men's basketball team improved to 3-0 with an 80-72 win at UC Irvine Saturday night in WSU's first road game of the season. The 'Cats are now 3-0 for the first time in five seasons.
The Anteaters jumped out to an early 7-2 lead but Weber State responded with a 15-3 run and ended up with a 37-32 lead at halftime.
In the second half UC Irvine rallied back and held a two-point lead at 59-57 with under 6:00 to play. That was when the Wildcats went on another run, this time an 11-1 run over the next 3:00 and never looked back.
"This was a hard fought game but we got some stops when we needed, made some big shots and found a way to win," said WSU head coach Randy Rahe. "That's what you have to do on the road. Irvine is a very aggressive team and played very hard, but we didn't panic and made plays when we needed to."
Damian Lillard led four Wildcats in double figures, finishing with a season-high 27 points. The junior also four assists and was a perfect 8-8 from the free throw line. Scott Bamforth continued his great week chipping in with 18 points for Weber State on 4-5 shooting, including two three-pointers.
Kyle Bullinger had a double-double, the fourth of his career, finishing with 11 points and a career-high 16 rebounds.
Sophomore Kyle Tresnak finished with 10 points and Frank Otis added seven points and seven rebounds.
Weber State outrebounded the Anteaters 44-39 and shot 39 percent from the field, compared to 35 percent for UC Irvine.
The Wildcats will now have a week off before playing at the Saint Mary's Shamrock Office Solutions. They will take on Jacksonville State on Nov. 27 and they play either Saint Mary's or San Francisco State on Nov. 28.
