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Nate Carter had a season-high 21 points and eight rebounds as UC Riverside defeated Saint Mary's 83-71 Monday night for its third straight victory.
The Gaels, coming off a close six-point defeat against fifth-ranked Arizona, cut the deficit to three at 44-41 early in the second half, but UC Riverside (3-4) went on an 8-0 run with 13:30 left, capped by a Mark Peters drive and layup that made the score 52-43.
Saint Mary's (6-5) got no closer than eight the rest of the way.
UC Riverside shot 57.7 percent from the field in the first half and 54 percent for the game against Saint Mary's, who entered the contest with the 12th best field goal defense in Division I at 36.4 percent.
It was the highest total an opponent shot against Saint Mary's all season.
Kevin Butler and Vili Morton had 19 and 15 points respectively for UC Riverside.
E.J. Rowland led Saint Mary's with 18 points. Frederic Adjiwanou scored 15 and grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds.
UC Riverside closed out the first half with a Carter layup that put the Highlanders ahead 40-35 at the break.