LOS ANGELES – UC San Diego freshman Francis Nwaokorie finished one rebound shy of a double-double, and senior Toni Rocak grabbed 13 boards, but it wasn't enough as Loyola Marymount beat the Tritons, 57-44, in an exhibition contest at Gersten Pavilion on Friday night.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The game got off to a promising start for the Tritons, who built an early 9-4 lead thanks to a 5-0 run capped by a Jake Kosakowski three-pointer. UC San Diego forced five quick Lion turnovers.
 
LMU answered with an 11-0 run of its own to take a 17-13 lead with 5:42 left in the first. UC San Diego briefly took an 18-17 lead on a Bryce Pope three-pointer, but the Lions took advantage of 11 second chance points to lead 25-20 at halftime.
 
Eli Scott led all scorers with 11 in the first half and he also had a game-high six first half rebounds. Pope shot 3-of-5 and scored 7 to pace the Tritons.
 
UC San Diego connected on just 32% of its first half shots, while limiting the Lions to 37.9%.
 
With the score tied at 28 with 14:20 to play in the second half, LMU used a 14-4 run to pull away.
 
The Tritons struggled to shoot the ball all night, connecting on just 30% of their attempts (17-57) – including 4-of-17 from beyond the arc.
 
Scott was one of three LMU players in double figures, scoring a game-high 15 points.
 
QUOTABLE
"It was good for us to get that experience of playing under the lights and in front of fans for the first time in forever," said UC San Diego head coach Eric Olen. "It was an ugly game both ways, but I thought we competed, and our defensive execution was very good. If we can build on our defensive effort and find our pace and rhythm offensively, then we're going to be fine. We're just scratching the surface with this group."
 
TRITON TIDBITS

• UC San Diego's starting five consisted of Pope, Jake Killingsworth, Rocak, Jace Roquemore, and J'Raan Brooks.
• The Tritons limited LMU to just 5-of-25 from beyond the three-point arc, and UC San Diego held a 47-39 edge on the glass.
• Nwaokorie scored 10 points and grabbed nine rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench.
• Rocak's 13 rebounds were a game-high. He played 28 minutes.
• UC San Diego struggled from the free throw line all night, connecting on just six of 15 attempts. The Tritons did hit three of their last four.
• The last time the Tritons competed in front of fans came on March 7, 2020 – a 76-62 UC San Diego victory in the championship game of the CCAA Tournament (Division II).

UP NEXT
UC San Diego will begin its second year of an NCAA-mandated four-year reclassification to Division I on Tuesday, when the Tritons open their season at Cal. Game time is scheduled for 2 p.m. from Berkeley and the game will be televised on Pac-12 Network.
 
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.