BOX SCORE

ST. GEORGE, Utah — The Dominican University of California men's basketball team saw its two-game win streak snapped in what was also the Penguins' worst loss of the season on Thursday night at Burns Arena, an 84-40 pounding at the hands of defending Pacific West Conferece co-champ Dixie State College.

It was a forgettable night for the Penguins (3-18/3-8), who were out-toughed across the board by the Red Storm (13-5/6-2), who came into the game ranked No. 6 in the NCAA Division II West Region poll. After a Mark Lewis three-pointer and basket from junior guard Xander McNally, Dominican led 5-3 with 17:33 to go but things fell apart for the Penguins soon after. Dixie State forced 14 first-half turnovers — and 24 total for the night — including six consecutive turnovers that allowed the Red Storm to build a 15-5 lead halfway through the first period. The Penguins went scoreless for the final 6:40 of the half and limped into the locker room trailing 35-13.

Things didn't get any better in the second half. The Penguins trailed by 30 at the 15:33 mark and the Dixie State lead increased at nearly every glance of the scoreboard. The Red Storm shot just 11-of-29 (.379) in the first half but caught fire in the second half, going 20-of-30 (.667) to finish the contest 31-of-59 (.525). Nine of those makes were from behind the three-point line. The Penguins had their lowest offensive output of the season on Thursday and finished the night just 15-of-50 (.300), the team's worst shoting percentage since a Dec. 31 loss to Division I Colorado State.

Three Dixie State players reached double digits. Jeremiah Barnes led the charge with 16 points. Forward Tom Whitehead made three of the Red Storm's nine three-pointers and finished the night with 13 points. Derek Owen went a perfect 5-of-5 from the field and 2-of-2 from the free throw line to finish with 12 points and six rebounds. Brett Adams led the Red Storm with eight boards.

The Penguins were led by sophomore center Killian Larson's fifth double-double of the season. He finished with 10 points and 10 rebounds before fouling out. Sophomore guard Ian Collins proved to be a bright spot, going 4-of-5 for eight points, and freshman guard Myles Carrillo made his lone field goal attempt and added three assists and three rebounds. Senior forward Leon Hart pulled down seven rebounds in the defeat.

That was overshadowed by a play earlier in the game when the injury bug bit the Penguins yet again. With 16:30 in the first half, freshman redshirt guard James McKinnon went to the deck with an apparent left knee injury after being fouled on a rebound. McKinnon took a medical redshirt in 2009–10 after suffering a season-ending knee injury against Western Washington in Nov. 2009. His status is currently unknown.

The Penguins will head to Ariz. to face Grand Canyon University on Saturday, Feb. 12. It's an early tipoff that day, with action scheduled to start at 3:15 p.m. in Phoenix.