After compiling a 6-1 record in early season non-conference play, the UC Santa Barbara men’s basketball team struggled with miscues in an 84-76 loss to UC San Diego to open Big West Conference competition on Thursday night at the Thunderdome.
The Gauchos finished with 18 turnovers and allowed the visiting Tritons to gobble up 15 offensive rebounds in a game that head coach Joe Pasternack described as an early season test.
“UC San Diego deserves a lot of credit. They are a really good team, talented team, older team experienced with those guys coming back and probably have two or three all-conference players,” Pasternack said. “They really shocked us with their offensive rebounds. They had 15 offensive rebounds, and that was the game, I thought.”