Long Beach State can’t keep up with UC San Diego in Goldmine – Orange County Register

LONG BEACH — The Long Beach State men’s basketball team proved no match for UC San Diego as the Tritons took control early for an 80-54 win on Thursday night in a game that was played in the Goldmine.

Tyler McGhie had 26 points on 10-of-16 shooting to go with five rebounds and Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones scored 18 for UCSD (15-3 overall, 5-1 Big West Conference), which was playing its first game since its 12-game winning streak was snapped by UC Irvine last weekend. Justin Rochelin added 11 points, including seven straight during an early first-half run.

Varick Lewis tied his career high with 12 points off the bench to pace Long Beach (7-11, 3-3), which was playing in its smaller, older auxiliary arena because of a facility issue with the Walter Pyramid. Devin Askew added 11 points and five assists, and Cam Denson had 10 points and four rebounds in 18 minutes while battling foul trouble.

UCSD took control early with a 10-0 run. Kam Martin cut LBSU’s deficit to 15-10 midway through the first half, but the Tritons unleashed a 14-2 run to push the margin to 29-12 with 5:34 left in the half. UCSD hit eight consecutive shots while pushing the lead to 33-15 before taking a 38-23 halftime lead thanks to a McGhie floater as time expired.

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UCSD shot 60% in the first half (15 for 25) and a season-best 57.7% for the night (including a 9-for-19 showing from 3-point range), leaving Long Beach with no real opportunity to mount a comeback. The visitors took their largest lead of the night at 74-43 with 3:44 left.