Reserves spur Aggies: UCD shakes sluggish start to reach semifinals

LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Yo, turn the cab around and reschedule that flight. They're staying after all.

After a jittery start that looked as if the UC Davis men's basketball team would be making an early exit from its first appearance in the NCAA Division II Elite Eight tournament, the Aggies regrouped Wednesday behind their reserves and defeated West Texas A&M 63-55.

The Aggies (29-2) will meet College of St. Rose (New York) today in a 3 p.m. (PST) semifinal game at the Commonwealth Convention Center. The Golden Knights (27-5), champions of the Northeast Region, defeated Fairmont State 77-73 in overtime Wednesday.

The first four times the Aggies touched the ball they had two turnovers, shot one air ball and committed a charging foul to trail 11-2. The deficit grew to 19-6 before UC Davis coach Bob Williams called in the reserves with about 13 minutes left in the half.

"Obviously, we are very pleased to get this one out of the way and to be able to overcome the jitters," Williams said. "I think our bench really helped in the first half. They didn't seem to be quite as jittery as the starters and they seemed to be a little more aggressive.

"Once they got us back into the game and we put the starters back in, they played the same way, very aggressive, very attacking, and we were OK after that. But it was the bench that really made the difference."

Jonathan Surface and J.P. Bergez were among those who came off the bench to spark an 18-4 run that helped lift the Aggies to a 39-29 halftime lead. Surface, who scored all eight of his points in the half, hit two three-pointers, and Bergez collected six points.

The Aggies' defense was even more devastating. UC Davis, which has the best scoring defense in Division II, allowed the Buffaloes just six points in the final 10 minutes of the first half.

"I mean this as a tribute to UC Davis," said West Texas A&M coach Rick Cooper. "They played us exactly the way we needed to be played. They had a great game plan. They pressed us just enough to cause some turnovers, and they zoned us just enough to keep the ball out of the paint, something we've done all year.

"For us to take 25 three-point shots, well, that's something we really didn't want to do. But they were making us take shots we didn't want to take."

The Aggies keep up the winning tradition of teams coming out of the West Region. Cal State Bakersfield, the national champion in 1993, '94 and '97, is the most notable.

"Not to take anything away from what Cal State Bakersfield has done in this tournament, but we are trying to start our own tradition," Williams said. "I've said all along this group has a lot left emotionally.

"We were pretty workmanlike during conference play, showed some emotion in regional play and some more today. But there is a lot of emotion left in our tank and we are looking forward to making a run at this thing."