Third-year forward Alex Hill led all players with 26 points as the Varsity Blues men’s basketball team fell 85-65 to the University of California Santa Barbara Gauchos in pre-season action on Tuesday, September 6 at the Athletic Centre Sports Gym.

 

Hill was 4-for-8 from beyond the arc and 7-of-8 from the free throw line en route to his near career-high performance. The Toronto native tallied a season-high 27 points versus Guelph during his first year with the Blues in 2010-11.

 

Fifth-year Blues forward Drazen Glisic of Sarajevo, BIH, recorded a double-double of 10 points and 10 boards, while Ben Garvin (Holland Landing, Ont.) totalled five points, five boards, six assists and two blocks in the loss.

 

Fourth-year Toronto guard Arun Kumar opened the scoring with an early three; however, the Gauchos responded with a 16-0 run to take control. Hill sparked a struggling Blues offence with back-to-back three’s late in the first and the Gauchos held an 18-9 lead after 10 minutes of action.

 

Hill ignited the home team, accounting for 16 of Toronto’s 29 first-half points.  The Blues went basket-for-basket with the Gauchos throughout the second quarter. Garvin stole the show in the dying minutes of the second quarter, with a huge block on Gauchos 6-foot-7 forward Alan Williams. UCSB held a 40-29 lead at halftime.

 

U of T opened the second half with a 7-0 run to bring the game within six, but UCSB battled back and went on a 9-3 streak of their own. Second-year Blues guard Matt Savel (Oakville, Ont.) drained a buzzer-beating three and the Gauchos headed into the fourth quarter with a 12-point advantage. 

 

Hill opened the fourth with eight points, including two consecutive three-pointers, in the first three minutes and brought the game within 10 (67-57). The play went back-and-forth with UCSB maintaining a 10-point lead throughout. The Gauchos slowly built their lead and James Nunnally ended his 15-point performance with a nice alley-oop as the final buzzer sounded with a 20-point favour for the visiting squad.

 

Senior guard Orlando Johnson led the Gauchos with 24 points and 10 rebounds, while both Greg Somogyi and Jaime Serna had 10 points in the win.

 

The Blues continue their NCAA pre-season competition when they host Mercyhurst College and Wittenburg University on October 14 and 16 at the Athletic Centre Sports Gym.

 

Toronto opens its regular season on Friday, November 11 when they take on the Waterloo Warriors at the Athletic Centre Sports Gym. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m.

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