SAN RAFAEL, Calif.—Dominican men's basketball fell to an early first half deficit to Concordia University Irvine and was unable to recover in the second half, leading to a 47-83 Eagle victory Thursday Night at the Conlan Center.
CUI (16-7, 10-4 PacWest) controlled the pace of play throughout the night, increasing their efficiency in the second half to soar past the Penguins. The Eagles started off slow, shooting 48.4% in the first half, and gained momentum in the second, going for 61.5% from the field in the second half. Four players reached double digits, as Andre Green led all scorers with 21 points, going 8-for-12 from the field, with two rebounds, two blocks and a steal. Cameron English neared a double-double with 16 points and eight rebounds, shooting 80% from the field Thursday night.
Dominican (4-18, 4-12 PacWest) was held to just 32.8% shooting from the field.
Jaelen Ragsdale was Dominican's leading scorer with 14 points and two steals, while
Thomas Faustka was the only other Penguin to reach double digits with 11 points, six rebounds and two assists.
The Eagles ran to an early 14-6 lead after going on a 10-2 run, capped off with a pullup jumper by Green in transition five minutes into regulation. Ragsdale helped the Penguins cut off the Eagles' run, making it to the foul like to sink two free throws, bringing Dominican's deficit to just six. On the Penguins' following possession, Ragsdale stayed hot, knocking down a three from the corner to help Dominican come within three of the Eagles at 16-13.
After trading baskets, Green extended the Eagles' lead back to five, receiving an inbounds pass with one second on the shot clock, nailing a midrange jumper with 6:50 left to go in the first half. On the following possession for CUI, Robert McCoy knocked down a long three from the right wing, drawing a foul on the play to extend the Eagle lead to 25-17.
The Eagles would go on a 9-4 run leading into the break as Kyle Gray boosted Concordia to a 34-21 advantage at the half when he grabbed an offensive board and muscled it back in for two, drawing a foul and completing the three-point play from the charity stripe.
Green sparked the Eagles' start to the second half, as McCoy found him underneath the basket to bring down a dunk, extending Concordia's lead to 41-24.
Sam Averbuck retaliated on the other end with a jumper from the corner, but the Eagles continued to apply pressure as Wright recorded two consecutive steals and took both the other direction for lay-ups in transition to boost Concordia's lead to 49-28 with 14:16 left in the second half.
The Eagles went on to extend their lead to as many as 30 when Austin Clarke threw a lob to Cameron English at the rim for a tip-in. Faustka retaliated on the other end, earning a three-point play by drawing a foul underneath the basket and knocking down the free throw with 8:34 left in regulation. But the Penguins were unable to string together a run, as CUI silenced the Penguins in the late minutes of the game.
The Penguins will be celebrating PRIDE Night at the Conlan Center Saturday when they match up against the University of Hawai'I at Hilo. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. PST and everyone in attendance is encouraged to wear tie-dye. Live video and stats will be available online.
