UC San Diego entered Tuesday night’s game against undefeated Utah State listed as an 8 1/2- point underdog.
Just over two hours later, the Tritons (10-2) were on the court at a stunned silent Dee Glen Spectrum celebrating a 75-73 victory, one of the biggest in program history.
They earned it behind 26 points from guard Tyler McGhie, who ran off a personal 8-0 run down to give the Tritons a late lead, 20 points from guard Anawania Tait-Jones, who went 10 of 12 from the free-throw line and a defense which forced 10 second-half turnovers. UCSD held the Aggies (10-1) to 26.7% shooting in the second half.
In a game that included eight lead changes but saw Utah State hold the lead for 24:55 minutes of game clock, the Tritons came up with several game-changing plays highlighted by wing Justin Rochelin’s incredible Anthony Edwards-like fastbreak dunk over Ian Martinez, which gave UCSD a 56-53 lead with 6:43 to play.
The visitors took over late when McGhie made a pair of 3-pointers from the wing followed by a runner in the paint over a crucial one minute, 26 second stretch.
With the Tritons clinging to a late lead, Chris Howell (Torrey Pines High School), Hayden Gray (Sante Fe Christian) and McGhie each swished pairs of critical free throws.
“Exceptionally proud, just a great performance from us in a tough environment,” said Tritons coach Eric Olen, who has guided the program while making the transition from Division II to Division I. “That’s a heck of a basketball team so just a terrific accomplishment for us to beat that team.”
The Tritons trailed 39-32 at halftime but opened the second with a quick 6-0 push and never allowed Utah State to pull away.
UCSD shot 46.8% from the field, went 8 of 27 from 3-point range and overcame a season-high 18 turnovers — many of them caused by Utah State’s matchup zone defense.
The key stat of the game: the Tritons went 23 of 27 from the free-throw line and 18 of 21 in the second half.
Also important: the Tritons finished with a 36-34 rebounding edge against the bigger Aggies.
The Aggies entered as one of five remaining unbeaten teams in the nation but were outdone by the Tritons, whose eight-game winning streak is the longest since the program made the jump to Division I in 2021.
The Tritons are ranked No. 17 in the latest Mid-Major Top 25 poll and Tuesday’s win should move them up even more.
Next up: UCSD travels to USD (3-8) at 6 p.m. Saturday. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
