LA JOLLA, Calif. ? The UC San Diego men's basketball team suffered a 74-67 defeat to Chico State in its home and league opener on Friday night at RIMAC Arena. With the victory the Wildcats improve to 2-3 overall and 1-0 in CCAA action while the Tritons fall to 2-3 overall and 0-1 in league play.

The difference in the contest came from behind the 3-point arc as Chico State drained 10 of its 19 shots from long range while the Tritons made only eight of 20, most of which came down the stretch when UCSD tried to rally.

Andy Bocian led Chico State on the night with 19 points on 8-for-10 shooting from the floor. The 6-foot-6 junior also made two of three 3-pointers on the night. Jon Baird added 16 points while Olajuwon Jones chipped in with 10 points in the victory.

Junior Clint Allard led the Triton offense with 18 points on 7-for-12 shooting from the floor. He made three of four from long range while also pulling down seven rebounds in the loss. Shane Poppen scored 14 points while fellow sophomore Darryl Lawlor added 12 and a game-high eight boards. Senior Robby Peters scored 10  to round out the UCSD scorers in double digits. 

The Wildcats shot 53% from the field on the night, making 23 of 43 shots while limiting UCSD to just under 43% shooting from the floor. The Tritons held a 34-23 advantage in rebounds but committed 14 turnovers on the night, three more than Chico State.

Head coach Bill Carr leads his team back into action on Saturday night, hosting Cal State Stanislaus at 7:30 p.m. in RIMAC Arena. The Wildcats travel to Carson to take on Cal State Dominguez Hills at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday night as well.

Following Saturday's CCAA matchup, UCSD will take a week off for Final Exams before returning to action on Sunday, December 10, with a 12 p.m. tip-off at home against Hawaii Pacific.