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SANTA CRUZ, CA -- Seniors Derek Jones and Julie Randall were named 2nd Team All-Independent by the Association of Division III Indpendents this past week, while Junior Jimmy Herrera was awarded Honorable Mention.

A 6'6" center from Van Nuys, Derek Jones has led the Men's Basketball Team both physically and emotionally all year as a tenacious competitor and Senior Captain. Averaging 25 minutes per game, Jones led the team in scoring with 14 points, shooting 58% from the field. Jones added 8 rebounds a game along with his defensive presence that led to a team high 56 blocks. Derek was a four-year player whose dedication to the program and UCSC athletics will be greatly missed by coaches, teammates, and fans.

Newcomer Jimmy Herrera made an immediate impact in his first year on the UCSC Men's Basketball Team, as he was named All-Indpendent Honorable Mention team for his efforts. A Junior guard from Los Gatos, Jimmy averaged 11 points per game in 21 minutes of play. Herrera shot 51% from the field, 31% from behind the arc, and 90% from the freethrow line. Going into his second season, Jimmy will definitely be the player to watch on next year's Men's Basketball Team.

Congratulations to Derek, Julie, and Jimmy on their All-Independent Achievements.
...More on WBB page >>
Related News at the Santa Cruz Sentinel
DIII All-Independents Winners List (MBB)
DIII All-Independents Winners List (WBB)

SANTA CRUZ, CA -- The UCSC Men's Basketball team lost a close one to visiting Chapman University, 46-53, in front of 350 plus fans packed into the West Fieldhouse. These two teams battled back and forth with the Panthers holding a 30-26 lead at halftime. With 2 minutes left to go in the second half, the Slugs pulled within 4 points. After stopping the Panther offense the Slugs pulled within 1 after Jimmy Herrera beat his defender back door to put in an easy layup. Patrick Carney hit 2 freethrows to put Chapman back up by 3, but the Slugs were unable to answer back on offense as Carney hit another 2 freethrows to put Chapman up 5 with 20 seconds left to go in the game. Senior Nick Owen had 2 chances to knock down a three pointer but was unable to connect. Chapman's Chad Eichten hit 2 freethrows to seal the win for Panthers.

Chapman was led by Patrick Carney's 13 points, shooting 7 for 8 from behind the line, while Josh Flyn-Brown added 10 points hitting 2 for 2 from behind the arc. Zach Wheatley led all players with 9 rebounds.

Jimmy Herrera was the lone Slug in double-digits with 13 points, shooting 5 for 9 from the field, while Derek Jones led the Slugs with 6 rebounds and 3 blocks.

UCSC falls to 3-18, while Chapman's record now stands at 11-7.
 ==> Boxscore UCSC vs Chapman

SANTA CRUZ, CA -- UCSC Men's Basketball played with confidence and poise to pull out their 4th victory against the visiting Colorado College Tigers. After playing a tough 40 minutes in a loss against Chapman University (57-58) on Saturday, the Tigers had to bounce back and battle another 40 minutes against the Slugs this afternoon. With 14 lead changes, the game wasn't decided until the final minutes of the game. The Slugs took the lead by 1 (69-68) after a Jimmy Herrera 3 pointer with 2 minutes left to go in the game, Senior Derek Jones stepped up and took a charge on Colorado's next possession to protect the lead and then hit 1 of 2 freethrows to bring the lead to 70-68. Colorado's next possession found Michael Reich behind the line to missed 2 freethrows, after having a perfect freethrow percentage (15 for 15 today and 11 for 11 last night). And it was the play of Jimmy Herrera in the final minute of the game that sealed the win for the Slugs. Herrera had a crucial offensive rebound with 40 seconds left to go and then played some tight defense on Colorado's Michael Reich in the final seconds of the game, who led all scorers with 33 points. Herrera then grabbed the defensive rebound off a Melvin Sando missed 3 pointer, where he was fouled with 2.5 seconds left to go in the game and went to the line to seal the win 71-68.

The Slugs shot 54% from behind the arc. Nick Owen hit 4 of the Slugs' 15 three-pointers and led all UCSC scorers with 15 points. Jimmy Herrera added 14 points, going 3 for 3 from behind the arc, and freshman Jon Mercado came off the bench to score 13 points.

The Slugs have a couple of weeks off and play their final home game of the season February 4th at 7pm against the University of Dallas, come out and support your Slugs and Seniors Matt Robles, Derek Jones, Chris Gilbert, Nick Owen, and Minas Be-Emnet.
 ==> Boxscore UCSC vs Colorado

SANTA CRUZ, CA -- The UCSC Men's Basketball team lost a close one to visiting Chapman University, 46-53, in front of 350 plus fans packed into the West Fieldhouse. These two teams battled back and forth with the Panthers holding a 30-26 lead at halftime. With 2 minutes left to go in the second half, the Slugs pulled within 4 points. After stopping the Panther offense the Slugs pulled within 1 after Jimmy Herrera beat his defender back door to put in an easy layup. Patrick Carney hit 2 freethrows to put Chapman back up by 3, but the Slugs were unable to answer back on offense as Carney hit another 2 freethrows to put Chapman up 5 with 20 seconds left to go in the game. Senior Nick Owen had 2 chances to knock down a three pointer but was unable to connect. Chapman's Chad Eichten hit 2 freethrows to seal the win for Panthers.

Chapman was led by Patrick Carney's 13 points, shooting 7 for 8 from behind the line, while Josh Flyn-Brown added 10 points hitting 2 for 2 from behind the arc. Zach Wheatley led all players with 9 rebounds.

Jimmy Herrera was the lone Slug in double-digits with 13 points, shooting 5 for 9 from the field, while Derek Jones led the Slugs with 6 rebounds and 3 blocks.

UCSC falls to 3-18, while Chapman's record now stands at 11-7.
 ==> Boxscore UCSC vs Chapman

SAN DIMAS, CA -- The UCSC Men’s Basketball team returned from their trip to Southern California with two much needed victories. The Slugs seemed to find their shooting touch during their sweep of Bard College from New York and La Sierra University from Riverside. In the Tournament opener Senior Captain Derek Jones and Freshman Jon Mercado led a balanced offensive attack with 18 points each. Alex Al-Sabah chipped in 13 off the bench for the Slugs as they cruised to a 97-63 victory over Bard College.

The next night, the Slugs balanced attack was too much for La Sierra as Santa Cruz finished off the Tourney with an impressive 86-52 victory. Four Slugs scored in double figures led by Jimmy Herrera with 14; Nick Owen and Jon Mercado each had 13 and Alex Al-Sabah had 11. In the Tournament four Slugs averaged in double figures (Jones, Herrera, Mercado, and Al-Sabah), and contributions from each member of the team made the trip a success for UCSC.

The Slugs look to continue their improved play at home this weekend versus Chapman University on Thursday at 7 pm and on Sunday at 1 pm versus Colorado College.

BELLINGHAM, WA -- Last Friday in Washington, the Slugs fell in a blowout to Saint Martin’s 99-77. The 22-point loss was a small improvement over the 24 point margin against the Saints last season.

UC Santa Cruz suffered a 110-60 loss on Saturday to Division II Western Washington in Bellingham. The Vikings, ranked No. 4 in D-II, improve to 8-0. Six Western Washington players scored in double figures. UCSC shot just 35 percent. Senior Forward Derek Jones led the Slugs with 13 points.

Preview Fall 2004

Coming off a disappointing 3-21 season, the Fighting Banana Slugs are returning 12 players and looking for a better season.

Leading the way this year are returning 4-year starters Derek Jones, Matt Robles, and seniors Chris Gilbert, Nick Owen and Minas Be-Emnet. They will be joined by juniors Bryan Maeda, Fernando Barreda, and Alex Al-Sabah and sophomores Dave Dupart, Aaron Burgess, Murphy Holmes, and Lorenzo Hutton.

Newcomers to this year’s squad include junior Jimmy Herrera and freshman Jon Mercado.

This year’s team should be much improved in all areas under the direction of 2nd year coach Gordon Johnson and his assistants. In addition, each player has worked hard over the summer to improve areas of concern with their individual games.

This year, the Slugs are looking for more offense with improved perimeter shooting, a more aggressive inside game, and an unselfish fastbreak style of play that the fans will love. On the defensive end, the Slugs are going to employ a controlling full court pressure style of play that will incorporate their individual quickness and team depth to work more in our favor.

This year’s team is prepared to make a run at the Division III NCAA Tournament, and has worked hard to become one of the more dominant DIII teams on the West Coast.

2003-2004 Season

March 1, 2004
Season Review

MORE PRACTICE TO COME: Men's basketball team practicing the new offenses that Coach Johnson brought to the program. Returner Minas Be-Emnet pictured with the ball.

January 30, 2004
Slugs Play Close Game to Crowd of 300

SANTA CRUZ, CA -- UCSC arranged for the men's basketball teams to play downtown at the Santa Cruz Civic in hopes that it would meld a stronger bond between the residents of Santa Cruz and Slug athletics. Most of those who showed up, about 300 in all, had ties to UCSC.

"I think there were definitely more people here than at the West Fieldhouse," 6-foot-6 junior Derek Jones said. "If it would have been like this at the West Fieldhouse they would have kicked people out or people would have been hanging from the ceiling."

In turn, Derek Jones was impressive on the floor. He scored a team-high 17 points, including the game’s only dunk, which he slammed during a crucial play with 36 seconds remaining to put the Slugs within three of the Panthers. They finally found those three points on a one-handed huck from Murphy Holmes that banked off the glass and fell with 12 seconds left, but it came too late.

The Slugs (3-16) were forced to foul after every made basket, and Chapman (11-8) was nearly infallible from the line. In fact, the Panthers sunk all but one of their 21 free throws. So, by the time Holmes’ made his remarkable shot, the Slugs were already down by four points.

"It came down to who was going to convert on the free throws, and they did," Johnson said.

UCSC found the loss especially frustrating since the Slugs led most of the game until Chapman took the lead with six minutes left.
==> See Full "Slugs' Night Out" in the Santa Cruz Sentinel
==> See "Are You Ready for Slug Hoops?" Santa Cruz Sentinel

January 15, 2004
Slug Basketball Homes A Win Against SJC

SANTA CRUZ, CA -- In UCSC's first basketball home game of 2004, the Slugs jumped out to early leads of 11-0 and 21-10. San Jose Christian fought hard to stay close, but the Slugs never lost the lead. Freshman Lorenzo Hutton led a balanced attack with 15 points along with Matt Robles and Derek Jones chipping in 15 each as well. Hutton hit two big free throws in the last minute and freshman Aaron Burgess who contributed 13 points and 9 rebounds sank a free throw to close the game and give UCSC its first home victory of the season 74-69.

January 10, 2004
Slugs Start Close But Leopards Take Lead

LA VERNE, CA -- In their second game in as many nights, UCSC visited La Verne University to take on the Leopards. UCSC jumped out early and used their size to dominate the paint and the boards early. Matt Robles and Derek Jones continued their marvelous play of late and led the Slugs with 21 points and 12 rebounds while Robles added 18. The first half was another back and forth affair with La Verne using a late run to take a 40-38 halftime lead. In the second half, La Verne's defense limited the Slugs to just 25 points and UCSC eventually fell 85-63.

January 9, 2004
Slugs Play Close Game at Cal Lutheran

THOUSAND OAKS, CA -- UCSC battled a strong Cal Lutheran team featuring DIII All-American Zareh Avedian and an undefeated home record. The first half was a back and forth affair with Matt Robles and Derek Jones leading the way. With a 10 - 1 run at the half, Cal Lutheran took a 41-30 halftime lead. Robles had 12 at the half and finished with 18. Jones finished with 12 points and 7 rebounds and outplayed Cal Lutheran's All-American holding him to 10 points on 4-17 shooting. The Slugs were down 19 with 17 minutes to play before they roared back to within 2 with 5 minutes left in the game. But, UCSC didn't have enough left in the tank to finish the game and eventually fell 76-65.

December 18, 2003
Mid-Season Recap

SANTA CRUZ, CA -- The UC Santa Cruz Men's Basketball Team is off to another rocky start. Once again the Slugs suffered from the early season scheduling woes of playing DI and DII competition. But the Fighting Slugs have shown poise and determination on their way to their first victory over Southwestern College (100-80). Four players scored in double-digits: Aaron Burgess, 12; Chris Gilbert, 15; Derek Jones, 21; and Darwin Zook led all scorers with a personal and team season-high of 22 pts. The team also posted a season-high 22 assists in that win. As the team enters the DIII half of their season, things look to get a little easier.

Junior Point Guard and team leader Matt Robles averages over 30 min. a game and has posted strong stats across the board, including 7.9 pts. per game, a team-high 35 assists (3.9 per game and a 1.34:1 assist-turnover ratio), and a team-high 23 steals. Robles dropped a season-high 7 assists vs. Utah Valley and had a season-high 19 pts. against St. Martin's (led all S.C. scorers). Minas Be-Emnet has added a spark off the bench averaging almost 9 pts. in just 18 minutes per game, including a game-high 19 pts. vs. Vandenberg AFB at the Redlands Tournament.

Derek Jones is another consistent scorer that averages 8.9 pts. per game and leads the team in rebounds (5 per game). Jones had the team's only double-double against the University of Redlands posting 15 pts. and 12 rebounds. Among the top scorers is Junior Chris Gilbert with 6.3 pts. per game, averaging 23 minutes. Gilbert leads the team in 3pts. FG made (10) and is among the top leaders in assists in steals.

Freshmen Aaron Burgess and Dave Dupart have stepped into starting roles this season and post consistent stats that include 8.8 and 8 pts. per game, respectively. Dupart posted his best numbers against DIII Redlands, scoring a season-high 20 pts. by going 10-16 from the field, and added 3 assists, 3 steals, and 1 block in 27 minutes. Burgess had a strong game against powerhouse DII San Francisco State, going 5-7 from the field, leading all Santa Cruz scorers with 11 points, while also grabbing 7 rebounds in 25 minutes.

Lone Senior Darwin Zook, rounds out the top scorers with 5.9 points per game, shooting 50% from the field and 40% from 3 pt. range, while coming off the bench to average 14 minutes a game.

2002-2003 Season

Freshman Forward Nick Vita

February 25, 2003
Men's Basketball splits final six games of season

The Men's Basketball team finished its season with a 79-74 win over the Oaks of Menlo College on Saturday night. Senior Forward Nick Echevestre lead the way in that game with 17 points and 7 rebounds. Sophomore Forward Chris Brazelton and Senior Guard James Page each had 15 points.

The team started the season with 14 consecutive defeats, facing many Division I and Division II opponents such as Santa Clara and UC San Diego.

Things finally started to gel for the team near the end of the season, as the team won three of their final six games.

Despite finishing with a 4-23 record, the team's youth speaks well for the future of the program. Only two seniors, Echevestre and Page, are leaving the team due to graduation, and four of the team's five starters are in either their Freshman or Sophomore years.

January 29, 2003
Men's Basketball loses fourth straight Conference game

OAKLAND, CA -- The UCSC Men's Basketball team lost its third straight game on Tuesday night at Holy Names College, 78-92.

The team had a double-digit lead in the second half, but couldn't put away the Hawks of Holy Names, allowing 55 second half points off of 53% shooting.

Starting Center Derek Jones had perhaps his best game of the season, scoring 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting and collecting 3 steals before fouling out. Freshman Forward Nick Vita had 14 points and six rebounds.

Senior Guard Darwin Zook came of the bench for 13 points and 6 rebounds.

The team plays its next game this Friday against Dominican. Tipoff is set for 5:30 PM.

January 14, 2003
Men's Basketball loses Cal Pac opener at Menlo; 60-77

The start of Cal Pac Conference play has not improved the UCSC Men's Basketball team's record, as the team lost at Atherton to Menlo College, 60-77 and saw their overall record fall to 0-14 for the season.

Freshman Forward Nick Vita continued his strong play, with an impressive stat line of 18 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 blocks and a steal. Sophomore Guard/Forward Chris Brazelton had perhaps the best game of his career, scoring 14 points with 10 rebounds.

As a team, however, the Slugs shot 35 percent from the field and committed 18 turnovers. Their free-throw shooting woes have also continued, as they shot just 60 percent from the line.

The team, with an extremely challenging preconference schedule, had gotten off to a poor start playing several Division I and Division II-caliber teams. With the start of Conference play, they had hoped to turn that around.

So far, that hasn't happened.

The team plays its next game this Friday night at home against nearby rival Bethany College. Game time is set for 7:30 PM.

December 30, 2002
Men's Basketball drops both games at Coyote Holiday Classic; falls to 0-10

SAN BERNADINO, CA -- The UCSC Men's Basketball team continued to struggle this past weekend, losing two games at the CSU San Bernadino Coyote Holiday Classic, and watching their record fall to 0-10 for the season.

Senior Forward Nick Echevestre is leading the team in scoring with 13.8 points a game. Echevestre lead the team in both CSUSB Tournament games, scoring 12 points against the host Coyotes and 9 points against the Rams of Angelo State.

Despite the start, there is still time for the team to get back on track for Cal Pac Conference play. The first conference game of the season won't be until January 10 at Menlo College. The team plays their next game on December 31st at Westmont College. They don't play at home again until January 31st, a conference game against Dominican.

December 4, 2002
Men's Basketball opens the year, 0-4

A tough early season schedule has seen the Men's Basketball team open their 2002-2003 campaign at 0-4.

Losses to Division I Santa Clara and three Division II teams, San Francisco State, Westmont and Northern Arizona have proven to be a "baptism-by-fire" of sorts for a young UCSC team that returns only two starters from last year's squad.

Senior Forward Nick Echevestre has lead UCSC in scoring with 12.5 points a game. Echevestre, last year's leading scorer, came into this season with a 14.7 career average.

Freshman Forward Nick Vita has been the top newcomer so far for UCSC, averaging 11 points and 5 rebounds a game with 4 starts.

Despite the rough start, the Slugs have shown definite signs of improvement. Their total scoring output has increased in each game so far, and free-throw shooting, unquestionably the team's biggest achilles' heel last year, has also improved, culminating in their 23-27 performance at Northern Arizona.

The team should have a much better time of it against San Jose Christian, who they'll play this Friday night at the West Field House. Game time is set for 5:30 PM.

Junior Forward Nic Echevestre, one of many newcomers to the Men's Basketball team, led UCSC in scoring with 17.1 points a game.

3/3/02
Men's Basketball: Year in Review

The 2001-2002 season was one of new beginnings for UCSC's Men's Basketball Team. First year Head Coach Bernard Thompson took over a program returning only three players and boasting nine talented freshmen. This was also UCSC's first year competing in the Cal Pac Conference of the NAIA.

The team struggled at times, finishing 7-17 overall with a 4-10 record in Conference play. The team began its league schedule with eight straight losses before rallying to win four of their next five, including a memorable 80-71 win against cross-county rival Bethany College on Seniors' night. The team's record also includes a narrow 64-71 loss to Division I UC Riverside.

Forward Nick Echevestre, a Junior transfer, lit up the Cal Pac, averaging 17.1 points a game in conference play. Echevestre shot 50% from the field and 36% from beyond the three-point arc.

Center Jesse Senestrano, a Senior transfer, gave the Slugs an immediate dominating presence on the inside. Senestrano averaged 15.1 points a game in conference play, and also averaged a team leading 6.4 rebounds. Perhaps his most impressive performance was against Division I St. Mary's on December 9. While most of the Slugs seemed completely overmatched against a larger, more-talented Division I St. Mary's team, Senestrano stepped up, scoring 15 points on 7-for-8 shooting. Senestrano established himself as the team's starting center after that, and earned an honorable mention for the all-conference team averaging 15.1 ppg in Cal Pac Conference play.

Senior Guard Jimmy Darr provided both excellent shooting and leadership in his final season, averaging 10.1 points and hitting on more than 33% of his three-pointers. Darr was also second on the team in assists with 2.0 a game.

Freshman Point Guard Matt Robles earned freshman all-conference team honors with his playmaking ability. Robles' 4.3 assists ranked him fourth in the conference. He also made 41% of his three pointers on the season.

Despite their rough moments, with their talented crop of young players starting to come into their own, the future of the program looks bright.

Junior Forward Nic Echevestre's 26 points lead UCSC. (top) In the final home game of his career, Junior Guard Jimmy Darr made six huge free throws down the stretch. (bottom)

2/15/02
Echevestre, Darr come up big in Men's Basketball's win over Bethany

SANTA CRUZ-- The Men's Basketball team made the most of its Seniors' night on Friday, defeating local rival Bethany College, 80-71.

Junior Forward Nic Echevestre continued his stellar play of late, scoring 26 points on 10-of-18 shooting and collecting 6 rebounds. Senior Guard Jimmy Darr, playing the final home game of his career, scored 20 points with 5 assists.

Junior Guard Don "Dap" Peoples would lead the Bethany Bruins, scoring 31 points with 7 rebounds.

The win avenges an earlier season loss at Bethany College on January 5th. On that night UCSC squandered a major lead, eventually losing 86-90.

This time UCSC would hold on. Darr would hit six free throws in the final minutes as UCSC held off a late Bethany run. As the buzzer sounded, Darr was embraced by his coach and teammates.

Before the game, Seniors Darr and Center Jesse Senestrano were honored by their teammates in a packed West Field House.

Darr has played at UCSC for four seasons, establishing himself as one of the teams best shooters. This year, he lead the team in three-pointers with 34 and was the team's third-leading scorer with 9.3 ppg. Darr was also second on the team in assists with 42.

A transfer from Redwoods College, Center Jesse Senestrano may only have played one season for the Banana Slugs, but he definately made an impact. Senestrano was UCSC's second leading scorer this season at 14.0 points a game. He led the team in rebounds at 6.0. Perhaps his most impressive performance was against Division I St. Mary's on December 9. While most of the Slugs seemed completely overmatched against a more-talented Division I program, Senestrano stepped up, scoring 15 points on 7-for-8 shooting. Senestrano established himself as the team's starting center after that, averaging 15.1 ppg in Cal Pac Conference play.

After struggling at the start of their conference schedule, the Slugs have turned it up at the end of their season, winning four of their last five games.

The team has one final game remaining in the regular season as they travel to CSU Monterey Bay Saturday night. Game time is 7:30 pm.

Congratulations to Jimmy and Jesse for all the great moments they've given Slug Basketball fans. Good luck to both of them!

Men's basketball: Peoples' 31 not enough for Bethany in loss - Santa Cruz Sentinel

2/10/02
Echevestre dominates Menlo; Men's Basketball picks up third win in four games

ATHERTON, CA -- Junior Forward Nick Echevestre powered the Banana Slugs to their third Cal Pac win, scoring a career-high 31 points, as UCSC defeated Menlo College, 77-73 Friday night in Atherton.

Echevestre took over in the absence of Senior Center Jesse Senestrano, the team's leading scorer. Echevestre shot 10-of-18 from the field, including 2-of-4 from three point range. He would also hit on 9-of-13 free-throw attempts.

Junior Guard Jimmy Darr would snap out of his shooting funk, scoring 19 points on just 5-of-7 shooting from the field.

Nathan Pratt would lead a balanced Menlo attack with 10 points.

Echevestre is now ranked seventh in scoring in the Cal Pac, averaging 17.4 points a game on 51% shooting from the field.

Men's Basketball is now 3-9 in Cal Pac play, and 6-16 overall. Their final home game is this Friday at the West Field against Bethany College. Game time is at 7:30 pm.

2/4/02
Men's Basketball picks up first, second Cal Pac wins

The Men's Basketball team picked up back-to-back Cal Pac wins this past weekend, bringing their conference record to 2-8.

At home on Saturday night, UCSC would fight past the Vanguards of Simpson College, winning by a score of 90 to 78. Senior Center Jesse Senestrano would dominate the inside, scoring 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting, and also collecting 9 rebounds. Junior Forward Nick Echevestre would come off the bench to score 16 points. Troy Fast, the league's player of the week, led Simpson with 31 points.

Echevestre and Senestrano would again lead the Slugs the next night against Pacific Union. Echevestre would erupt for 34 points, shooting 12 of 16 and going 4 of 5 from three-point range. He would also record 3 steals. Senestrano had 16 points and 7 rebounds, going 7 of 10 from the field. Aaron Waters would lead the Pioneers with 20 points.

This week's Cal Pac statistics show Echevestre at 7th in the conference in scoring at 16.8, and Senestrano at 10th with 16.2. Both players also rank 9th and 10th in field goal percentage. Freshman Guard Matt Robles is 3rd in the conference in assists with 4.9.

UCSC plays its next game this Tuesday in Belmont. Game time is at 7:30 pm.

12/26/02 Freshman Guard Matt Robles had 5 points and 2 assists against CSU Maritime

1/28/02
Cal Pac Basketball: Men fall to 0-8, Women win at CSU Hayward

SANTA CRUZ -- The Men's Basketball team came up short against CSU Maritime Saturday night, losing 59-66 at the West Field.

Brian Schafer lead the Keelhaulers with 22 points and 9 rebounds. Senior Center Jesse Senestrano would lead UCSC with 13 points, going 6 of 9 from the field.

After being down the entire second half, the Slugs would rally, cutting the lead to 50-52 with Jesse Senestrano's tip-in with 5:15 left in the game. But the Keelhaulers would go on a run, eventually sealing the game on two free throws by Damon Gomes with 1:13 left.

The UCSC Men had also lost the previous night at CSU Hayward, 80-92. Junior Forward Nic Echevestre led the Slugs with 20 points and 6 rebounds. Senestrano would add 18 and 10.

The Men's record now stands at 3-15, and 0-8 in Cal Pac play.

The Women's Basketball team won their game at Hayward Friday night, defeating the Pioneers, 44-41. Senior Guard Brianne Faria led the Slugs with 10 points and 6 rebounds. UCSC held Hayward to 23.6% shooting, one of their best defensive performances of the season. The team's record now stands at 4-14 overall, and 3-4 in Cal Pac play.

Both teams play their next games this Saturday night against Simpson College. Start times are 5:30 pm for Women's and 7:30 pm for Men's.

1/20/02
Cal Pac Basketball: UCSC Men, Women swept by Menlo, Holy Names

SANTA CRUZ -- Both the Men's and Women's Basketball teams lost to their Menlo College counterparts Friday night at the West Field House.

Lindsay Green scored 20 points and collected 7 rebounds for the Lady Oaks, defeating UCSC 60-70. UCSC took only 13 free-throw attempts in the game versus 30 for Menlo. Sophomore Guard Rachel Baudler led the Slugs with 14 points. Senior Guard Brianne Faria would have 8 points and 7 rebounds.

The Men's Basketball team came out with a lot of intensity against Menlo College, who entered the game undefeated in Cal Pac Conference play. Sophomore Center Paul Williams would score a season-high 20 points and collect 10 rebounds, shooting 5-of-6 from three-point range. But after going into halftime with a 38-37 lead, UCSC would see it slip away in the second half as turnovers plagued the Slugs. The Oaks' Trevor Mates would score 25 points on 10-for-15 shooting in leading his team to the 67-75 win over UC Santa Cruz.

On Saturday, the Women's Basketball team would face Holy Names College, 3-0 in conference play. The Lady Slugs shot 48% from the field in the first half, but went into halftime with just a one point lead. In the second half the Hawks of Holy Names would shoot 50% from the floor, led by Mya Paul who finished with 15 points and 8 rebounds. Freshman Forward Amanda Brecht would come off the bench to score 13 points.

The Men's team suffered one of their worst losses of the season against Holy Names, finally losing by a score of 33-62. The Slugs shot only 29% from the field and 40% from the free-throw line. Eddie Frazier led Holy Names with 19 points, 4 assists and 4 rebounds. Junior Forward Nic Echevestre would lead UCSC with 9 points and 4 rebounds.

The Women's Basketball team record is now 3-13 and 2-3 in Cal Pac play. The Men's record currently stands at 0-5 in Conference play and 3-12 overall. Both teams play their next game this Tuesday at Dominican College in San Rafael.

UCSC men fall big to Holy Names College - Santa Cruz Sentinel

1/14/02
Men's Basketball loses to CSUMB; Notre Dame de Namur

SANTA CRUZ -- The Men's Basketball team lost to both CSU Monterey Bay and Notre Dame de Namur this past weekend to fall to 0-3 in Cal Pac play and 3-10 overall.

On Friday night the Slugs allowed Monterey Bay to shoot 60 percent from the field. Senior Center Jesse Senestrano led the Slugs with 24 points and 8 rebounds. Junior Nick Echevestre added 22 points.

Stanley Thorne would lead the Otters with 19 points coming off the bench.

On Saturday, the Slugs would play better against the Argonauts of Notre Dame, but would still come up short. The Slugs were out-rebounded 45-23, and would lose by a score of 61-64.

Senestrano would again lead the Slugs with 23 points. Echevestre would add 17 with 4 steals.

UCSC had a chance to take the lead, down by 1 with 11 seconds left and Echevestre at the line. But the Junior Forward would miss both free throws, and UCSC was forced to foul.

Junior Guard Jimmy Page's three-point attempt at the buzzer would fall short.

Senestrano's 23.7 scoring average in Cal Pac play ranks him second in the conference. Freshman Guard Matt Robles 6.7 assists-per-game also place him second in that category.

The team plays their next game this Friday night at home against Menlo College. Game time is at 7:30 pm.

Monterey offense overtakes UCSC - Santa Cruz Sentinel

1/6/02
Men's Basketball loses Cal Pac Opener at Bethany

SCOTTS VALLEY, CA -- At one point UCSC held a 20 point league, but would ultimately come up short at Bethany College Saturday night. After shooting 56 percent from the field in the first half, UCSC would struggle in the second at both ends off the court, finally losing 86-90.

Senior Jesse Senestrano would lead the Slugs, scoring 24 points and collecting 8 rebounds. Junior Forward Nicholas Echevestre had 14 points and 5 assists.

Don "Dap" Peoples led the Bearcats of Bethany College will 31 points and 11 rebounds. Peoples was one of only six players who suited up for Bethany.

With the loss, the team's Cal Pac record now stands at 0-1 and 3-8 overall. Their next game is next Friday at home against CSU Monterey Bay. Game time is at 7:30 PM.

Bethany men beat UCSC, 90-86 - Santa Cruz Sentinel

12/31/01
Men's Basketball splits games at Warner Southern Tournament

LAKE WALES, FL-- After losing to host Warner Southern on Saturday, the Men's Basketball team bounced back in Game 2 of the Warner Southern Invitational, defeating Wisconsin Lutheran, 82-74.

Junior Forward Nicolas Echevestre led the Slugs with 21 points, going 12-for-14 from the free throw line. Junior Guard Jimmy Darr continued his hot-shooting, going 7-of-10 from the field and 3-for-3 from three-point range. He would finish with 18. Freshman Point Guard Matt Robles had the first double-double of his career, finishing with 11 points and 10 assists to go along with 5 steals.

Freshman Guard Kevin Christensen would lead the Warriors of Wisconsin Lutheran with 14 points.

The team finishes its pre-conference schedule at 3-7. The play their first Cal Pac Game this Friday at Bethany College. Game time is 7:30 pm.

12/18/01
Men's Basketball overcomes Foster's 56; defeats Cal Christian

SANTA CRUZ-- The Men's Basketball team finally earned their second win of the season Monday night, defeating Caliornia Christian by a score of 98 to 83.

Senior Center Jesse Senestrano would lead the Slugs with 26 points, 11 rebounds and 3 assists in just his second start of the season. Junior Guard Jimmy Darr would continue his hot-shooting, scoring 19 points on 6-for-11 shooting from the field and 3-for-7 from three-point range.

Junior Guard Derek Foster would lead the Royals with 56 points in one of the most spectacular perfomances by an individual opposing player in school history. Foster would go 18-for-25 from the field and 8-for-10 from three-point range, playing all 40 minutes of the game. Foster had 30 Cal Christian's 39 points at halftime. He would also have 4 steals against the Slugs.

The Banana Slugs opened the game on a 12-1 run, but California Christian rallied behind Foster, at one point cutting the lead down to 2 with less than 5 minutes left. UCSC would regain its composure, and go into halftime leading by 8.

The Slugs experienced a more serious scare when, with 5:43 to go in the game, Sophomore Center Paul Williams came down hard, injuring his mouth. Williams would eventually return to the bench to the applause of the fans. He would not return to the game, but is not expected to miss any more action.

The Men's record now stands at 2-6. Their next two games will be at the Warner Southern Tournament in Florida on December 29-30. These will be their final two games before Cal Pac Conference play begins.

12/13/01
Men's Basketball Loses at Division I St. Mary's College

MORAGA, CA-- UCSC's Men's Basketball team would find themselves outmatched Sunday night at Division I St. Mary's College.

After staying close through the first ten minutes, St. Mary's would blow the Slugs away, finally winning by a score of 39-95.

Sophomore Guard Chase Poole would lead the Gaels, scoring 16 points on 6-of-7 shooting in only 13 minutes. Junior Forward Ross Benson would add 14 points and 7 rebounds. The Gaels were able to give a lot of minutes to backup players, as no starter played more than 24 minutes.

Senior Center Jesse Senestrano was the lone bright spot for the Slugs, scoring 15 points on 7-for-8 shooting after coming off the bench.

The team's now stands at 1-5. Their next game is next Saturday at Division I UC Riverside.

12/1/01 YP.net's Pamela Thompson presents Men's Basketball with a $10,000 contribution at the UC Santa Cruz YP.Net Invitational

12/6/01
Men's Basketball falls short at UCSC Invitational; now 1-4

SANTA CRUZ-- The Men's Basketball team lost to longtime Division II rival UC San Diego, 54-76 Saturday night at the West Field, in the final game of the UCSC Men's Basketball Invitational.

Junior Guard Jimmy Darr would lead the team with 16 points and 3 assists.

Ryan Swed would lead UCSD with 18 points and 9 rebounds.

UCSC is now 1-4 on the season, having lost to Willamette on Friday night. The Slugs play their next game at Division I St. Mary's College December 9.

• Former S.C. star helps San Diego rout UCSC - Santa Cruz Sentinel
• Willamette defeats UCSC, 66-59 - Santa Cruz Sentinel

11/26/01
Men's basketball drops two games at Southern Oregon Tournament

ASHLAND, CA-- The Men's Basketball team lost two games at the Southern Oregon Invitational this past weekend, losing to host Southern Oregon 69-75 and to NAIA powerhouse Oregon Tech, 58-101.

Junior Guard Jimmy Darr would lead the Slugs against Southern Oregon, scoring 20 points on 5-for-8 shooting before fouling out. Junior Forward Nicolas Echevestre would add 14 points and 5 rebounds in the losing effort.

Senior Center Jesse Senestrano would lead the Slugs against Oregon Tech, scoring 10 points on 5-for-8 shooting with 3 rebounds in only 10 minutes of playing time. Junior Forward Patrick McCarthy would have an excellent overall game, add 6 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals for the night.

With the two losses, the team's record stands at 1-2. The Slugs host their own Tournament this weekend at the West Field House.

11/17/01 UCSC's Chris Brazelton had 9 points and 5 rebounds in the win

SANTA CRUZ-- The Men's Basketball team opened its 2001-2002 season with a dominating 113-37 win against Golden State Baptist College on Saturday night at the West Field House.

The team, under first year head coach Bernard Thompson, led throughout, dominating Golden State in every facet of their game. As a team, UC Santa Cruz shot 52.6% from the field, also connecting on 50% of their 3-point attempts. They out-rebounded the Golden Bears 60-29. They team was even more impressive on defense, allowing only eight total field goals for Golden State. No opposing player scored more than 9 points.

With their reserve players seeing a great deal of playing time, the Slugs were led by Junior Guard Jimmy Darr, who had 12 points, 3 assists and 5 steals in 18 minutes of action. Senior Center Jesse Senestrano came off the benh to score 11 points with 7 rebounds in only 9 minutes.

The 76-point margin of victory is the largest UCSC has seen in many years. The team expects to face stronger competition at the Southern Oregon Tournament next weekend.

• Box Score
• UC Santa Cruz men's basketball season starts - Santa Cruz Sentinel

10/4/01
UC Santa Cruz Athletics hires new Basketball Coaches

SANTA CRUZ-- UC Santa Cruz Athletics is pleased to announce the hiring of Bernard Thompson as Head Coach of Men's Basketball and Laura Mitchell as Head Coach of Women's Basketball.

Coach Thompson is a former NBA first-round draft pick of the Portland Trailblazers, and has spent 17 years as a professional player, both in the U.S. and overseas. A graduate of Fresno State with a degree in Criminology, Thompson hopes to take UC Santa Cruz to its first postseason in school history.

"My philosophy has always been defense first, because that's how I was taught", Thompson says. "[I] know that if you're successful defensively, you'll put yourself in a position to win."

"We'll be a lot of fun to watch." he adds.

Coach Mitchell begins her second stint as head coach of UCSC's Women's Basketball team, having coached the team from 1996 to 1999. A graduate of the University of Dallas with a degree in English and a focus in Journalism, Mitchell has also worked as a sports broadcaster for KNTU in Northern Texas. She's less than a year from completing her MBA in Sports Management from the University of Dallas. Mitchell will also serve as the Senior Women's Administrator.

"I'm extremely excited to be coming back [to the UCSC] community." Mitchell says. "I want to make being part of the team a great experience for the student-athletes who come here."

UCSC hires basketball coaches - Santa Cruz Sentinel

7/23/01
Men's Basketball Coach Accepts Puget Sound Position

Coach Eric Bridgeland has accepted the Men's Basketball position at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington. Bridgeland, who compiled a 23-26 record in two seasons as the head coach at UCSC, will be leaving UCSC July 31st.

The Athletic Department will soon begin a comprehensive search to fill the vacancy. Interested parties should contact Athletic Director Greg Harshaw at (831) 459-4524 or by email at harshaw@cats.ucsc.edu.

Bridgeland set to leave UCSC - Santa Cruz Sentinel

2/19/01
UC Santa Cruz routes Patten in Season Finale

UCSC defeated Patten College, 85-65, Monday afternoon at the West Field.

The Slugs were once again led by freshmen Matt Glynn, who had 32 points, 9 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 steals, and Paul Williams, who had 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Chris Brown had 23 points to pace Patten.

The win closes UCSC's season at 12-13.

The game was a "make-up" addition to the Slugs' schedule from a postponed game on January 23.

Boxscore | Santa Cruz Sentinel Article

2/17/01
UCSC dispatches San Jose Christian on Seniors' Night

UCSC defeated San Jose Christian, 94-81 Saturday night at the West Field. On this, the Slugs' Seniors' night, all four departing seniors made major contributions. Starting forwards Michael Halligan and Josh Killian both had 17 points with 7 and 6 rebounds, respectively. Graham Betchart had 5 assists with 8 points, two steals and tight defense all night. Starting center Jake Stuebbe added 9 rebounds and 6 points. All four were honored in a pre-game ceremony for both the character they've brought to the program as well as their contributions on the basketball court. They were joined by fellow senior Paul Foster, whose senior season was cut short by injury.

Ironically, on the night they honored their seniors UCSC was led in scoring by two freshmen. Center Paul Williams had 24 points and 9 rebounds coming off the bench, and starting guard Matt Glynn had 18 points, shooting 6-for-6 from the field and 6-for-6 from the free-throw line.

San Jose Christian was led by Bernis Hoskin with 22 points, 17 rebounds and 2 blocks.

The Slugs will finish their season on Monday at the West Field House in a makeup game against Patten College. The game is scheduled for 2:00 PM.

Boxscore

Media Articles

• 2/20/01 - UCSC Slugs end basketball season on a high note - Santa Cruz Sentinel
• 2/13/01 - Santa Cruz holds off Bethany, 80-76 - Santa Cruz Sentinel
• 2/4/01 - The UCSC freshmen - Santa Cruz Sentinel
• 1/7/01 - UCSC earns 2nd win in a row - Santa Cruz Sentinel
• 1/5/01 - Holiday Inn Santa Cruz Classic pivotal to UCSC,s playoff chances - Santa Cruz Sentinel
• 12/23/00 - San Jose St. 58, UCSC 49 - Santa Cruz Sentinel
• 11/24/00 - Men,s basketball: Slugs find way to win home debut - Santa Cruz Sentinel