GOLDEN, Colo. - Hitting just 29 percent of its shots from the field, the UC San Diego men's basketball team suffered its first loss of the season Friday, a 54-43 defeat against Colorado School of Mines at Lockridge Arena.
UCSD fell to 2-1 overall, while CSM kept its perfect record intact at 3-0. It was the first-ever meeting between the two teams.
Overall, the Tritons made just 16 of their 55 shot attempts and went 5-for-17 from behind the three-point line. They converted only one of seven three-point shots in the first half. Coming into the game, UC San Diego had netted 25 threes through two contests.
The Orediggers weren't much better from the floor, hitting 16 of 44 attempts, 36 percent. They made just two of 12 three-point shots, but were 20-for-25 from the free throw line. CSM also finished with seven blocks and eight steals.
UCSD turned the ball over 16 times and forced CSM to give it up on 15 occasions. The Tritons had six steals.
"I thought we had a great effort defensively, but we weren't able to score enough points to win," said UCSD head coach Eric Olen. "In order to beat a good team on the road, we need to execute on both ends."
Individually, Hunter Walker led the Tritons with 14 points. Zach McMillan had eight points and Drew Dyer pulled down a team-high six rebounds.
The Orediggers got a game-best 18 points from Brian Muller and another 10 out of Gokul Natesan. Zach Rusk led all players on the boards with eight.
UCSD trailed by just two points with 2:38 left in the game when a Walker layup made the score 45-43 in favor of CSM. However, the Orediggers closed out the night with a 9-0 run, all of those points coming from Muller. He hit two jumpers and added five free throws to account for the final score.
The Orediggers led 26-19 at the half.
UCSD concludes its Colorado trip Saturday as it takes on Fort Lewis at 4 p.m. (PT). The Skyhawks (5-0) defeated MidAmerica Nazarene Friday at Colorado School of Mines by a score of 71-52.
"We have to have a short memory and go out and play better tomorrow," said Olen.
#TritonsRising
