The top-seeded Tritons pull away late to beat the second-seeded Anteaters, 75-61, reaching the Big Dance in their first year of eligibility and denying UCI, which was looking to make its first

UC San Diego pulled away late to beat UC Irvine, 75-61 to earn its first Big West Conference Tournament championship and its first NCAA Tournament berth on Saturday night.

UC San Diego, in its first season of NCAA Tournament eligibility, is going to the Big Dance after clinching its first Big West championship with a 75-61 victory over UC Irvine on Saturday night in Henderson,