CHICO, Calif. - UC San Diego ran into a hot-shooting Chico State team and fell by a 72-64 count in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) men's basketball action Friday night at Acker Gymnasium.
Chico State shot 62 percent (26-42) overall and hit a scorching 72 percent (13-18) of its shots in the second half. The Wildcats also made 17 of 21 free throws on the night.
The Tritons found themselves down by as many as 15 points in the opening half and Chico led by 13, 37-24, at the break.
"They came out with a lot of energy and were the more aggressive team in the first half," said UCSD head coach Eric Olen.
The Tritons, down once again by 15 points, 49-34, at the 13:24 mark of the second half, exploded for a 21-5 run and went ahead, 55-54, with 6:01 on the clock. Hunter Walker drilled back-to-back three-pointers to close out the spree.
With 4:05 remaining, Walker made a jumper to edge the Tritons up once again at 60-58. However, Chico State closed out the game on a 14-4 run over the final 3:44 to seal its eighth cosecutive victory.
"We bounced back and continued to fight in the second half," said Olen. "I thought we showed a lot of resiliency and toughness to give ourselves a chance to win, but we ultimately didn't make enough plays down the stretch to pull it out."
Walker, who leads the Tritons in scoring at 12.7 points/game, finished with a team-best 15 points, hitting three treys in the process. Adam Klie had 14 points, Drew Dyer totaled 11 and Zach McMillan finished with 10. Aleks Lipovic had four steals.
As a team, UC San Diego shot 42 percent (22-53).
For Chico State, Robert Duncan amassed a game-high 19 points and was 7-for-9 from the field. Jordan Semple hit a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds, while Tanner Giddings had 16 points and Mike Rosaroso finished with 12. Dunan and Rosaroso each had five assists and Semple grabbed five steals.
The Wildcats were dominant on the boards, out-rebounding the Tritons 31 to 18.
The teams split the regular season series as UCSD won, 69-53, in La Jolla on Jan. 3. It was the worst conference loss for Chico State in the last two seasons.
The Tritons fell to 12-7 overall and 10-5 in the CCAA, remaining tied with Cal State Stanislaus for third place. The Wildcats improved to 15-5 and 12-3, tied with Cal Poly Pomona for first place.
UCSD takes on Cal State Stanislaus in Turlock Saturday at 7:30 p.m. The Warriors were walloped, 77-48, by Cal Poly Pomona Friday.
#TritonsRising
