Mystery men top ‘Eaters

One question seemed to be reverberating around UC Irvine’s Bren Events Center during the Anteaters’ stunning 91-90 men’s basketball loss Tuesday to Division II Cal State Stanislaus:

Who are these guys?

The Warriors played 12 players, 11 of whom were community college transfers and the other a transfer from Division III Menlo College.

Only one Warriors player was taller than 6-foot-5, but that player -- 6-7 junior John Schrader -- played only two minutes and did not record any statistics other than one foul.

Junior guard Mike Martinez had averaged 25.5 points in the team’s first two victories. But he had three fouls early in the first half and finished with just eight points in 26 minutes.

Further, Stanislaus Coach Keith Larsen said afterward the Warriors were playing without 6-5 senior Kavin Young. Larsen said Young, whom he called the best player in the California Collegiate Athletic Assn., broke an ankle just before preseason practice began.

* UCI fans may have recognized at least one name in the Stanislaus lineup. Junior Richard Maraker, the younger brother of University of the Pacific senior All-Big West standout Christian Maraker, chipped in eight points.

* Stanislaus exposed the most glaring UCI weakness: lack of quickness.

UCI Coach Pat Douglass has leaned on walk-ons Dustin Price and Brandon Sievers early this season to help inject some quickness into the rotation. But Price, the backup point guard, had four turnovers in 11 minutes and did not score Tuesday.

* Even UCI’s shooting prowess -- it shot 58.6% from the field, including 8 of 20 three-pointers -- wasn’t enough to stave off Stanislaus.

* Perhaps Larsen, who called the victory the biggest in his coaching career, gained extra motivation from UCI’s Nov. 19 upset victory at then-No.13-ranked Stanford.

Larsen was an assistant under former Cardinal head man Mike Montgomery from 1992 to 1997.

* Stanislaus plays host to Cal State Monterey Bay on Saturday. The Otters include 6-7 junior reserve center Joey Lindquist, a product of Estancia High.

Lindquist has two points and three rebounds in 15 minutes this season. * A pair of former UCI contributors are off to strong starts elsewhere.

Former Anteaters guard Mike Efevberha, dismissed from the program after being convicted of petty theft and now a junior at Cal State Northridge, is the reigning Big West Player of the Week after averaging 25.7 points in three games.

Efevberha and the Matadors will visit UCI on Jan. 13.

Todd Lee, Douglass’ right-hand man as an assistant and associate head coach the last eight seasons in Irvine, has guided Division II Kentucky Wesleyan to a 4-1 record heading into tonight’s action.

* UCI rallied from 35 points down in its 79-76 loss at Pepperdine on Saturday. Had the Anteaters won, it would have been the biggest comeback in NCAA Division I history.

The biggest deficit ever overcome is 31, by Kentucky (over LSU) in 1994 and by Duke (over Tulane) in 1950.

* The UC Irvine women’s basketball team is 0-5 after falling, 92-54, at UCLA on Wednesday.

It was a disappointing return to Westwood for UCI Coach Molly Tuter, who was an assistant coach for the Bruins from 1998 to 2000.

The ‘Eaters, who opened 0-9 last season -- Coach Mark Adams resigned after the first seven losses -- stand to be 0-6 after Sunday’s visit to Santa Clara.

But UCI’s next home game is Dec. 14 against New Mexico State, which takes an 0-6 record into Saturday’s game against Texas-Arlington.

* The top-ranked Vanguard women’s basketball team is living up to expectations. The Lions have outscored their first four opponents by an average of 104-37, including Tuesday’s 95-60 win at San Diego Christian to open Golden State Athletic Conference play.

Sophomore Jessica Richter, a transfer from Syracuse, is averaging 32.8 points for the Lions. She has 131 points in 134 minutes thus far.20051202D81LI9NL(LA)