Friday, February 27
Santa Cruz, Ca.
6:00 PM
UC Santa Cruz Athletics
14-11,0-0C2C
74
vs
77
Christopher Newport University
21-4,0-0C2C
1
2
OT 1
F
UC Santa Cruz
35
31
8
74
Chris. Newport
30
36
11
77
Overtime Battle Falls in Favor of CNU as Slugs Drop C2C Semifinal
2/28/2026 12:19:00 PM | Men's Basketball
SANTA CRUZ, Ca. — In one of the most thrilling games of the Division III season, the UC Santa Cruz men's basketball team fell to No. 9 Christopher Newport 77-74 in overtime on Friday evening at The West Field House. Joseph Espy posted 20 points and 13 rebounds for his 10th double double of the season while Ben Lim added 18 points, including a few clutch three-pointers throughout the game. Ollie Miller contributed 12 points off the bench, and Leo Wagner added eight points.
How It Happened
The first half was neck and neck, Thomas Conley hit a jumper to get UCSC on the board, and Espy followed with a jumper and an and-one free throw to give the Slugs a 5-3 lead. Wagner converted a pair of free throws and assisted Conley on a three-pointer to push the advantage to 10-5. Lim found Espy for a layup to make it 12-8, and Espy added a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 16-14. Hunter Kennedy scored on a fastbreak layup assisted by Aidan Carleson, and Caden Breznikar threw down a dunk followed by a free throw to push the lead to 21-16. Lim added a layup to make it 23-16 before knocking down a pair of free throws to stretch the advantage to 25-17. Espy converted another free throw, and Lim hit a jumper assisted by Miller to push the lead to 28-20. Espy grabbed an offensive rebound and converted a tip-in to make it 30-22, and Wagner drilled a three-pointer assisted by Espy. Miller hit a pair of free throws in the closing seconds as UCSC took a 35-30 lead into the break.
The second half was a back-and-forth battle from start to finish. Conley opened with a layup assisted by Espy to push the lead to 37-32, and Espy added another layup to make it 39-35. Wagner drilled a three-pointer assisted by Espy to extend the advantage to 42-36. Miller converted a layup and then knocked down a three-pointer assisted by Lim to give the Banana Slugs a 49-45 lead. The Captains fought back to tie the game, but Miller answered with a jumper to put UCSC back ahead 51-50. Espy scored on a layup to make it 53-50, and Breznikar added a layup to keep the Slugs in front at 56-55. Lim came up clutch down the stretch, drilling back-to-back three-pointers assisted by Carleson and Espy to push the lead to 62-57. Miller converted a pair of free throws to extend it to 64-59, and Espy added a free throw to make it 65-61. Christopher Newport clawed back to tie the game at 66-66 with 11 seconds remaining, and Miller's three-point attempt at the buzzer fell short, sending the game to overtime.
Overtime was a heavyweight fight. Breznikar opened with a steal, but UCSC couldn't convert on the ensuing possession. Christopher Newport took a 71-67 lead, but Espy battled for an offensive rebound and converted a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 69-74. Christopher Newport sealed the win at the free-throw line, closing it out 77-74 in a game that had the West Field crowd on its feet from start to finish.
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How It Happened
The first half was neck and neck, Thomas Conley hit a jumper to get UCSC on the board, and Espy followed with a jumper and an and-one free throw to give the Slugs a 5-3 lead. Wagner converted a pair of free throws and assisted Conley on a three-pointer to push the advantage to 10-5. Lim found Espy for a layup to make it 12-8, and Espy added a pair of free throws to extend the lead to 16-14. Hunter Kennedy scored on a fastbreak layup assisted by Aidan Carleson, and Caden Breznikar threw down a dunk followed by a free throw to push the lead to 21-16. Lim added a layup to make it 23-16 before knocking down a pair of free throws to stretch the advantage to 25-17. Espy converted another free throw, and Lim hit a jumper assisted by Miller to push the lead to 28-20. Espy grabbed an offensive rebound and converted a tip-in to make it 30-22, and Wagner drilled a three-pointer assisted by Espy. Miller hit a pair of free throws in the closing seconds as UCSC took a 35-30 lead into the break.
The second half was a back-and-forth battle from start to finish. Conley opened with a layup assisted by Espy to push the lead to 37-32, and Espy added another layup to make it 39-35. Wagner drilled a three-pointer assisted by Espy to extend the advantage to 42-36. Miller converted a layup and then knocked down a three-pointer assisted by Lim to give the Banana Slugs a 49-45 lead. The Captains fought back to tie the game, but Miller answered with a jumper to put UCSC back ahead 51-50. Espy scored on a layup to make it 53-50, and Breznikar added a layup to keep the Slugs in front at 56-55. Lim came up clutch down the stretch, drilling back-to-back three-pointers assisted by Carleson and Espy to push the lead to 62-57. Miller converted a pair of free throws to extend it to 64-59, and Espy added a free throw to make it 65-61. Christopher Newport clawed back to tie the game at 66-66 with 11 seconds remaining, and Miller's three-point attempt at the buzzer fell short, sending the game to overtime.
Overtime was a heavyweight fight. Breznikar opened with a steal, but UCSC couldn't convert on the ensuing possession. Christopher Newport took a 71-67 lead, but Espy battled for an offensive rebound and converted a pair of free throws to cut the deficit to 69-74. Christopher Newport sealed the win at the free-throw line, closing it out 77-74 in a game that had the West Field crowd on its feet from start to finish.
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Team Stats
UCSC
CNU
FG%
.379
.400
3FG%
.350
.421
FT%
.719
.542
RB
43
45
TO
16
12
STL
6
9
Game Leaders
Pts
20
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
10
Pts
12
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
Wing
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's BasketballGuard
/ Men's Basketball
Center/Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
/ Men's Basketball
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
