SANTA BARBARA — The Cal State Fullerton men’s basketball team couldn’t slow UC Santa Barbara enough in the paint and couldn’t keep pace from the perimeter. That doomed the Titans in the Thunderdome.
Deuce Turner scored 18 points and Zion Sensley had 14 as UCSB (17-10 overall, 9-7 Big West Conference) started to take control toward the end of the first half then hammered Fullerton in the second half on its way to an 86-56 victory in a Big West Conference game on Thursday night, handing the Titans (6-22, 1-15) their eighth consecutive loss.
Things have gotten particularly rough for Fullerton as it trudges toward the end of a frustrating season. Its last six losses have been by an average of 23.7 points.
Antwan Robinson finished with a career-high 16 points and seven rebounds, and Donovan Oday had 15 points, four rebounds and four assists for Fullerton, which has four regular-season games left. Kendrick De Luna added 10 points and Kobe Young grabbed eight rebounds.
The Titans shot 38.6% from the field, 6 for 22 from 3-point range and missed half of their 12 free throws. UCSB shot 53.2% from the field, 12 for 26 from behind the arc and 8 for 13 from the free-throw line, outscoring the visitors 38-28 in the paint to go with its 18-point advantage from long range.
Robinson and Oday combined for 21 points in the first half. Robinson hit back-to-back 3-point shots to get Fullerton within 24-22 with 7:23 left, but the Gauchos closed the half on a 9-0 run for a 38-27 halftime lead.
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Robinson – who shot 4 for 6 from 3-point range – hit another one during a 7-0 run that got the Titans within 40-34 two minutes into the second half, but the Gauchos delivered a dominant response.
UCSB outscored Fullerton 26-4 over the next nine-plus minutes to open a 66-40 lead with 10:45 left and coasted the rest of the way, leading by as much as 35.
Kenny Pohto added 11 points for the Gauchos, while Turner and Sensley each grabbed five rebounds.
UP NEXT
Fullerton hosts UC Irvine on Thursday at 7 p.m.
BIG WEST STANDINGS
Through Thursday, Feb. 20
UC San Diego – 23-4, 13-2
UC Irvine – 22-5, 12-3
CS Northridge – 19-7, 11-4
UC Riverside – 18-10, 11-5
UC Santa Barbara – 17-10, 9-7
UC Davis – 15-12, 9-7
Hawaii – 14-12, 6-9
CS Bakersfield – 12-16, 6-10
Cal Poly (SLO) – 10-17, 4-11
Long Beach State – 7-20, 3-12
CS Fullerton – 6-22, 1-15