NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The UC Irvine basketball team trailed for most of Thursday night’s game but used an impressive finishing kick to rally for an impressive road win.

Bent Leuchten scored 21 of his 23 points in the second half, and UCI outscored Belmont 18-9 over the final three minutes to win, 92-84, in a showdown between proud mid-major programs with postseason goals.

Leuchten, who shot 6 for 9 from the field and 11 for 12 from the free-throw line, scored 10 of his points during the final three minutes and grabbed a game-high 15 rebounds for the Anteaters (10-1), who were coming off their first loss of the season, a 67-55 defeat at Oregon State.

Justin Hohn scored 19 points on 6-of-12 shooting (4 for 6 from 3-point range) and was also instrumental down the stretch, scoring 14 of his points after halftime, including the other eight points during the final run. Myles Che added a season-high 18 points on 7-for-13 shooting for UCI, which scored 67 points in the second half while shooting 63.3% from the field. Devin Tillis had 15 points and eight rebounds.

UCI fell behind by double digits just five minutes into the game, and Belmont (9-3) racked up steals and deflections to turn 10 Anteater turnovers into early offense on its way to a 39-25 halftime lead.

UCI regrouped in the second half but Belmont still led 60-47 with 12:43 left, before fouls began to mount for the hosts. UCI – the nation’s second-ranked free-throw shooting team – worked into the bonus with 9:41 left.

Seven points from Leuchten and a Torian Lee 3-pointer got UCI within 65-64 at the under-8 media timeout, then a jumper by Che gave the Anteaters their first lead (66-65) with 6:55 left. A Tillis three-point play made it 71-69, but the Bruins drained two 3-pointers to regain the lead at 75-71 with 3:48 remaining. Three Che free throws and a Belmont 3-pointer made it 78-74, but Hohn took over for UCI.

He rattled home a deep, contested 3-pointer and a driving layup, then Leuchten added a layup. Che then missed a tough fadeaway jumper at the end of the shot clock, before a huge scramble for the loose ball rebound ended up with Leuchten, who scored and drew a foul for a three-point play and an 84-78 UCI lead with 1:01 left.

Following a timeout, Leuchten grabbed a defensive board and made two more free throws for an eight-point lead.

A free throw by Hohn and two by Leuchten were sandwiched between two Belmont 3-pointers as the Anteaters led 89-84 with 11 seconds left. Hohn made two more free throws with nine seconds left to secure the win.

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UCI was outrebounded 23-14 in the first half, but dominated the glass (26-6) in the second half. The Anteaters finished 24 for 26 (92.3%) from the free-throw line and shot 52.5% from the field (31 for 59).

Carter Whitt had 25 points, five rebounds and nine assists to pace the Bruins, who saw their five-game winning streak come to an end. Isaiah Walker added 16 points, and Tyler Lundblade had 11.

Belmont shot 46.4% (32 for 69) from the field – including 15 for 38 from 3-point range – and had a season-high 25 assists but went just 5 for 8 from the foul line.

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UCI plays at Duquesne on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. PT.