SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Senior Jeremiah Gray and freshman Christian Futch had strong second-half performances, but Dominican men's basketball fell short in a 62-60 loss Friday to Stanislaus State at the Conlan Center.
 
Gray finished with 25 points, four rebounds and two steals for the Penguins (0-1), while Futch added 17 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. Xavier Francois led the Warriors (1-0) with 12 points and 10 rebounds, while teammate Mat Bradshaw chipped in 13 points.
 
Dominican shot 43.1 percent from the field and 30.4 percent from behind the arc, while holding Stanislaus St. to 34.4 percent and 26.1 percent, respectively. The Warriors held a 41-36 advantage on the glass leading to 16 second-chance points to make up the difference in the shooting percentages.
 
Stanislaus St. got out to a hot start behind Kyle Gouveia's five points to take a 7-2 lead in the first three minutes of the game. Bradshaw then capped a 7-point run with a 3-pointer to give the Warriors a double-digit advantage at 17-7 with 12 minutes remaining in the half. Jordan Williams helped the Penguins cut the lead back to single digits with a 3 of his own with 6:53 on the clock to cap a 7-1 run.
 
After a 5-0 Stanislaus run, Williams hit again from behind the arc and Jeremiah Gray added two of his own to cut the lead to 31-26 with 2:42 left in the half. Futch ended the half with an old-fashioned, 3-point play to cut the Warrior lead to 35-31 at the break.
 
Futch and Gray took over to start right out of the locker room and quickly cut the lead to one on a 5-1 run. Gray then tied the game at 41 with a short jumper and a free throw with 15 minutes remaining in the game.
 
After the Warriors retook a five point lead, Gray hit a 3-pointer followed by an offensive rebound and put back from Futch to tie the game again at 54. Williams then gave Dominican its first lead of the game with a tip-in bucket with 4:47 left on the clock and Futch added a layup two minutes later to increase the lead to four.
 
Bradshaw was fouled as he made a 3-pointer on the next possession, but missed the ensuing free throw as the Penguins maintained the lead. Francois scored four consecutive points to give the Warriors the lead for good at 61-60 with 32 seconds remaining.
 
The Penguins will take on San Francisco State at 2 p.m. PST Saturday at the Conlan Center to conclude the PacWest/CCAA Tip-Off Challenge. Live stats and video will be available online.