LETHBRIDGE, Alberta — A big night from Devin Tillis and another strong defensive showing helped UC Irvine defeat Towson, 67-60, on Saturday night to win the Western Slam.
Tillis had 25 points on 9-of-12 shooting to go with seven rebounds and three assists as the Anteaters overcame 20 turnovers to win their third game in as many nights, holding all three opponents to 60 points or less. UCI improved to 8-0 heading into next week’s Big West Conference opener against Cal State Bakersfield, its best start since the 1980-81 team started 9-0.
Bent Leuchten added 11 points, six rebounds, two steals and two blocked shots for UCI, while Justin Hohn had nine points, five rebounds and four assists. Myles Che added nine points and four rebounds, and Kyle Evans had six points, seven rebounds and two blocks.
UCI opened a 24-15 lead with 7:54 left in the first half, but Towson used a 13-1 run to take the lead with about three minutes left. A Hohn 3-pointer followed by five consecutive points from Tillis gave the Anteaters a 33-30 lead at halftime.
Neither team could create much separation to begin the second half. UCI finally opened a seven-point lead on a 3-pointer by Che with 9:08 left, then Tillis added one of his own for a 55-45 lead with 8:11 left. Towson responded with a 9-0 surge to tighten the score again, then nudged ahead by one point twice in the final 3:30.
The Anteaters regained the lead at 61-60 when Leuchten made a hook shot in the paint on an assist from Tillis with 1:24 left. Leuchten stole the ball on Towson’s next possession and Tillis hit a pair of free throws with 46 seconds left. Towson missed a pair of shots on its next possession, then Che hit a pair of free throws for a 64-60 lead with 13 seconds left. Towson missed a pair of free throws, then Tillis made two more of his own with six seconds left to close the scoring.
UCI shot 52.2% from the field (24 for 46), including 6 for 12 from 3-point range, and went 13 for 14 from the free-throw line to help offset its turnovers. The Anteaters also held Towson (4-5) to 41.3% shooting overall (2 for 10 from behind the arc) and outrebounded the Tigers 36-24.
Mekhi Lowery had 14 points and two blocks off the bench to pace Towson, while Dylan Williamson had 11 points and Rahdir Hicks scored nine. Nendah Tarke had seven points and eight rebounds. The Tigers turned it over just eight times and had a 22-7 advantage in points off turnovers, but they also shot just 6 for 11 from the free-throw line.
Tillis was named the tournament MVP and was joined on the all-tournament team by Leuchten, VonCameron Davis (Kent State), Lowery (Towson) and Simeon Cottle (Kennesaw State).
UP NEXT
UCI hosts Cal State Bakersfield in a Big West opener on Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Bren Events Center.
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