The University of California, Riverside (UCR) hosted California State University, San Marcos in an exhibition Friday night, as the team ramps up for the regular season slated to begin Nov. 4 at Oregon. The Highlanders were in control of the game from the opening tip, as they rolled to a 89-61 victory over the Cougars.
Redshirt sophomores Barrington Hargress and Kaleb Smith led the way for the Highlanders, as they combined for 41 points on 17 out of 25 combined shooting. Smith asserted his physicality early as he accounted for 7 of the first 12 points and finished the night with 11 rebounds to lead the team.
Smith saw his minutes grow as the season matured last year. Elaborating on what he hoped to take away from the game, he shared that he is “just [trying to grow] confidence … [and] help the team overall. [It’s] most important that we win and [I think] we’ll be in a great position to [do so].
“We have a really deep roster … once we get our guys back, like Parker Strauss [and] Joel Armotrading, and we have our full squad … we’re all ready to go kill [and] get wins [against higher ranked teams].”
Hargress was hard to stop on Friday night, as he consistently broke down defenders and created his own shots all game long. His quick first step and tight handle makes him hard to defend on the perimeter, and it’s easy to see why he’s on the Preseason All-Big West First Team.
Hargress touched on his hopes for the team this year, and how he aspires to lead, stating, “Just making sure that I’m a more composed guy, more of a leader to my teammates [and trying to] direct them, make sure they’re comfortable [since] I’ve done this before now, I’m just trying to be like a fountain [and] really give to my guys right now.”
Another bright spot for the Highlanders was redshirt junior, Gavin Davis. Davis did not play last year, but head coach Mike Magpayo sees him as possessing a bigger role for the team this season. Commenting on Davis, Magpayo shared, “He’s a 7 a.m. guy, every single day … and he’s a piece of the puzzle. We had two top guys out, Joel Armotrading and Parker Strauss, so that [possessing the] next man up mentality, Gavin Davis stepped up which was good [to see].”
Davis dropped 15 points and went three for six from downtown, and showed flashes of what he could be for the Highlanders. With his catch-and-shoot abilities from beyond the arc, he could see more minutes as the season goes on.
The first five games on the schedule for UCR are against Division I opponents, and Magpayo gave his early impressions on their schedule, explaining, “We have a brutal opening slate, our first six games are probably the number one hardest strength of schedule in the country … but I think this group has a certain confidence and attitude that they’re gonna go in there and try to win every single game we play.”
The Highlanders are underdogs for their first two games, where they will visit the Oregon Ducks and the Brigham Young University Cougars. Last season, UCR got off to a slow start during the regular season as they fell to as low as 7-12, before finishing the year at 15-17. Magpayo and the crew are hoping to get off to a faster start this season, as they return a lineup with more experienced players. All starters are returning except for recent graduate, Kyle Owens.
