The storied rivalry between the Chico State and UC San Diego men's basketball teams is drawing to a close with the Tritons departing for the Division I ranks next season. The final regular-season chapter at RIMAC Arena in La Jolla was all about the Wildcats. Chico State shot a blistering 60 percent and handed 4th-ranked UC San Diego its first loss of the season with an 81-73 win.
The Wildcats relied heavily on a zone defense for the first time this season and limited UC San Diego to season-lows in scoring, made 3-pointers (nine), 3-point percentage (.265) and field-goal percentage (.448). The Tritons entered the matchup ranked second in the nation in made 3s and fourth in 3-point percentage.
"We've been working on (the zone) all year but we haven't had a lot of confidence in it," Chico State Head Coach Greg Clink told FM 93.9 KPAY's Mike Baca on Thursday's post-game show. "We decided to commit to it tonight."
Redshirt freshman Joshua Hamilton hit 6-of-7 shots on his way to a career-high 15 points and Kevin Warren scored 15 as well. The Wildcats knocked down 8-of-14 threes, and when UC San Diego took that away, hit 15-of-24 shots inside the arc in the second half.
Chico State improved to 6-2 overall and 2-1 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) with its fourth consecutive win. UC San Diego slipped to 8-1 overall and 2-1 in the CCAA. Both teams are part of an eight-way tie for first place atop the conference standings early in the campaign.
While a handful of the Wildcats have fond memories of their matchups with UC San Diego over the years, the only experience for many came last season. And it was not pretty.
"All I really know is that we opened the season here last year and got smacked. And then at home we got smacked again." Hamilton told Baca when asked what his teammates told him about the rivalry.
In fact, the Wildcats had lost three straight at RIMAC Arena before Thursday's win.
Chico State's performance likely had its fans harkening back to much better moments in the building. Their dead-eye shooting was reminiscent of one of the best four-game runs in the program's history when they reeled of wins against three consecutive higher seeds—Western Washington, Hawaii Pacific, and top seed UC San Diego—to win the 2016–17 NCAA Championship Tournament West Regional at RIMAC Arena.
Hamilton and the Wildcats were only focused in on turning the tables on 2018–19.
"I just made sure I was on 10 and ready to compete from the moment our last game was over," said Hamilton.
As was the entire Chico State team. In fact, Chico State's bench outscored UC San Diego's 25-7, while all five starters made strong contributions: Malik Duffy (14 points and 7 rebounds) and Calvin Geraci (11 points) joined Hamilton and Warren in double figures; Justin Briggs contributed eight points, nine rebounds, and a blocked shot; and Isaiah Brooks bagged eight points, six assists, and pair of steals, and a team-best +/- of +23.
"We were ready to go. They were as dialed in and prepared mentally to compete as they've been all season," Clink said. And after explaining to Baca all that he liked about the team's performance, finished by saying: "I know I'm rambling here but I'm fired up."
The Wildcats took control of the game early and withstood a pair of UC San Diego surges to put the game away.
An 11-0 run, bookended by a Duffy three and inside bucket, gave Chico State a 21-9 lead less than eight minutes into the game.
UC San Diego cut the lead to six on three separate occasions—once in the first half and four times late in the second stanza—but never got closer.
Chico State led by as many as 15 in the first half and went to the break leading 46-32. Back-to-back buckets from Geraci grew the advantage to its largest of the night at 52-35 with 17:04 to go.
But the Tritons chipped away, taking advantage of four consecutive Chico State possessions that ended in a turnover to build a 7-0 run that got the lead down to six with 5:37 to play. Briggs and Hamilton answered with buckets to create some breathing room.
The Tritons remained within striking distance, however, and the lead was back to six when the Wildcats broke the UCSD press, Brooks found Warren ahead of the pack, and the junior guard ripped home the dagger with 27 ticks remaining.
Hamilton hit two free throws seconds later to salt the game away.
(Hamilton) was stellar," said Clink. "His ability to get the ball into the paint not only for himself but to create shots for others was big tonight. He was a huge spark for us."
The Wildcats are now 10-10 all time against the Tritons in La Jolla and 22-16 overall.
"I'm not going to say I'm going to miss them," Clink jokingly told Baca on the pre-game show. "But we've had some great battles over the years."
Thursday's game was certainly one of them, at least from a Chico State perspective.
The Wildcats have another battle on their hands Saturday night when Cal Poly Pomona—which shared last year's CCAA title with UC San Diego—comes to town for a 7:30 p.m. tip. The Broncos, who blasted Humboldt State 96-64 Thursday night in Arcata to improve to 6-2, are also among the eight teams tied atop the CCAA standings at 2-1.
