LA JOLLA, Calif. - In a battle between undefeated men's basketball teams Monday night at RIMAC Arena, No. 14 UC San Diego was edged, 67-63, by third-ranked Western Oregon.
With its first loss of the season, UCSD dropped to 7-1 overall. WOU improved to 10-0 and is one of just four unbeaten NCAA Division II squads in the country.
With only 38 seconds left in the game and the Tritons down by three points, Drew Dyer was fouled on a three-point attempt. He netted all three free throws to tie the score at 61-61. However, on the Wolves' ensuing possession Jordan Wiley drilled a three to put his team up for good with 20 seconds remaining.
Dyer and Adam Klie each finished with a game-high 19 points. Klie was 6-for-9 from the field and 7-for-10 from the free throw line, while Dyer hit four treys and brought down a team-best six rebounds.
UC San Diego shot a season-low .458 (22-48), mostly due to making just nine of its 27 attempts (.333) in the opening half. The Tritons heated up in the second frame, shooting at a 61.9 percent (13-21) clip. They made just 60 percent (12-20) of their free throws.
Western Oregon had four players hit double-figure point totals including Wiley (15), Devon Alexander (12), Julian Nichols (11) and Alex Roth (11). Roth had a game-high seven boards. Andy Avgi, who came into the contest averaging 23.0 points, was held to just eight.
The Wolves made 42.6 percent (23-54) of their shots on the night.
The game featured 10 lead changes, all in the first half. The Tritons led by as many as five points when a pair of Klie free throws put them up 12-7 at the 16:27 mark.
Western Oregon, which owned a 32-30 lead at halftime, increased its advantage to 11 points (48-37), the largest of the night, when Wiley hit a three at 13:42 of the second half. UC San Diego then went on a 14-3 run, capped by a three-pointer from Dyer at 9:03 to even it up at 51-51.
A layup by UCSD's Zach McMillan with 10 seconds left cut his team's deficit to just a point at 64-63, but WOU made three free throws in the waning moments to account for the final score.
It was the first-ever meeting between UC San Diego and Western Oregon.
UCSD plays two California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) games this week, traveling to Cal State Dominguez Hills on Dec. 17 (5:30 p.m.) before hosting Cal State San Marcos on Dec. 20 (3 p.m.).
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