UC Irvine knocks off Sacrament State 79-53

Dec 1, 2013, 12:48 am

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Chris McNealy had 15 points and six rebounds to lead UC Irvine to a 79-53 victory over Sacramento State Saturday night.

Luke Nelson had 14 points and Alex Young added 12 for UC Irvine (5-3).

Cody Demps led Sacramento State (2-3) with 16 points and six rebounds.

Sacramento State jumped out to a 7-2 lead, and held a 32-31 halftime advantage as the Hornets outshot UC Irvine from the field in the first half. However the Anteaters got hot in the second half, making 67.9 percent of their field goals, while Sacramento State could only hit 8 of 30 attempts. UC Irvine also had an advantage on the boards, taking down 44 compared to Sacramento State's 29 for the game.

McNealy made two free throws, a jump shot and a 3-pointer to start the second half and give UC Irvine the lead for good 38-34.