Box Score: Cal State San Bernardino 78, Sonoma State 72
ROHNERT PARK, Calif- Four Sonoma State men's basketball players scored in double-figures, led by the 16 points of
Ben Washington, but five Cal State San Bernardino players chipped in with ten or more points and shot 46.3 percent as a team, en route to a 78-72 victory over the Seawolves on Saturday night at The Wolves' Den. SSU drops to 5-7 overall and 3-5 in the CCAA while the Coyotes remain above .500 at 6-4 and 4-2.
Sonoma State jumped out to a big lead early, a 9-2 advantage after two free throws by Washington just two minutes into the contest. However, Cal State San Bernardino used its size and athleticism to go on a 15-2 run, not allowing a SSU field goal for seven minutes.
Will Olsem finally ended the field goal drought on a three pointer with 7:58 left in the opening half.
The Coyotes eventually jumped out to a large 33-22 lead at the 4:37 mark, before allowing the Seawolves to march right back into the game. Sonoma State got to within five points on two successful free throws by Olsem at 1:16, but Cal State San Bernardino took a six-point lead into the locker room at halftime, 37-31.
A jumper by Washington at the 11:39 mark in the second half put the Seawolves within two points (48-46), but it would be as close as SSU would get the rest of the way, despite closing the gap to three on several occasions.
The Seawolves couldn't find the hot hand like Thursday night's three-point contest. SSU was just 8 of 23 from beyond the three-point line (34.8 percent) and was 21 of 56 from the floor overall (37.5). The Coyotes, meanwhile, hit on 46.3 percent of their shots (25-54) and nailed nine three balls in 22 attempts.
Washington (16),
Patrick Scott (15), Olsem (13) and
Matthew French (12) scored in double-figures for Sonoma State in Saturday's loss. Both French and Scott corralled a team-high six rebounds.
For the visitors, CSUSB was led by the 18 points of Corey Caston and Aaron Hill came off the bench to add 17. Theron Laudermill II (12), Nate Roth (11) and David Jefferson (10) also scored ten or more points, as the Coyotes earned considerable ground in the CCAA standings. Laudermill grabbed a game-high nine boards.
Sonoma State will wrap up its five-game homestand next weekend when it welcomes San Francisco State on Thursday and Cal State Monterey Bay on Saturday. Both games are set for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff at The Wolves' Den in Rohnert Park.
