Senior Eddie Miller tried his best to prevent Thursday from being his final game in an UC Davis men’s basketball uniform.

Miller scored a team-high 17 points to lead the eighth-seeded Aggies during in the Big West Tournament quarterfinals, but top-seeded Long Beach State countered with a balanced scoring attack to win 80-46 at Honda Center.

UCD, which was making its first visit to the conference tournament since 2010, finished the season with a 5-26 record. Sophomore guard Tyler Les hit a trio of 3-pointers and scored nine points for the Aggies against the 49ers (23-8). He ended his year with 82 treys, just one shy of Fowzi Abdelsamad’s school record set in 2004-05.

Eugene Phelps scored 18 points to pace Long Beach, which will face No. 6 UC Irvine in the conference semifinals on Friday night. T.J. Robinson added 12 points, while James Ennis, Casper Ware and Peter Pappageorge each had 11.

UCD kept things close early, trailing just 15-12 midway through the first half after a pair of free throws from Miller. LBSU, however, pulled away with a 26-9 run over the final 10 minutes to take a 41-21 advantage at halftime. Later, a 13-4 spurt put the 49ers up 55-27 with 13:58 to go.

After going 15-1 in Big West play this season, Long Beach State shot 47.6 percent (30-for-63) from the field on Thursday, outrebounded the Aggies, 39-28, and had just five turnovers.

“Long Beach showed why they’re a very good basketball team,” said UCD coach Jim Les, who finished his first year at the helm. “They have a number of weapons. We tried to take Casper Ware out of production and other guys stepped up. My hat’s off to them.

“And my hat goes off to the Big West. This is an outstanding tournament and a great venue.”

Phelps went 7-for-7 from the field and had 15 points in the first half while Ware had nine points. Miller had 10 points for the Aggies, who had 11 turnovers that led to 19 points.

“We talked before the game about not handing them offense,” Jim Les said. “Not only are the turnovers killers because you don’t get too many opportunities to score but those turnovers create offense for them, they get out and run and now we can’t set our defense and make them play five-on-five.”

UCD played hard throughout the second half, picking up the first points on a layup from J.T. Adenrele to make it 41-23, before Long Beach State increased its lead.

The Aggies had five 3-pointers in the game, falling just four shy of the school’s single-season record of 244 set in 2008-09.

The contest also brought to an end the careers of seniors Miller and Adam Malik, who had five points, including a long trey in the game’s final seconds. UCD also concluded its first season under Les who also coached his son, Tyler, for the first time.

“I wish our record would’ve been better but it was great, not only because he’s my father but because he’s a great coach,” Tyler Les said. “He knows his stuff. He’s won at the highest level but I think it’s also strengthened our relationship off the court. I’m really glad he’s here, I’m really glad he’s here to stay and I’m excited about the future.”

The Aggies improved late in the year, winning four of six games toward the end of the schedule. They highlighted that late run with a 21-point comeback win at Northern Arizona on Feb. 13, and a 78-75 upset of second-place Cal State Fullerton on Feb. 25. UCD also turned back rival Pacific.

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UCD senior Eddie Miller (21), shown here in a game earlier this season, scored 17 points on Thursday in a Big West Conference Tournament matchup against Long Beach State, but the Aggies were knocked out with a 80-46 loss. Sue Cockrell/Enterprise file photo

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