CARSON, CALIF. - On Thursday, January 20th, the Sonoma State men's basketball team looked to get back to winning ways as they headed back down south to take on Cal State Dominguez Hills in a quick one day trip before finishing the weekend at Cal State East Bay. Head coach Rich Shayewitz and his coaching staff have had their share of ups and downs this season but they have been able to pull off some quality upset wins at home and are looking to take some of that magic on the road as all three wins for the Seawolves have come at home this season. SSU is fresh off of a home stand split last weekend as they were able to pull off a thrilling overtime win over Cal Poly Pomona last Thursday night. Several players have seen an increase in playing time in recent weeks as some normal starters have been out on COVID protocols. Simon Ramirez has been one of those players with some standout performances with the Seawolves limited roster. Ramirez comes into tonight's contest averaging over 15 points in his last four games. Veteran shooting guard Michael Smith has also helped lead the way for SSU as he's recorded double figures in four of his last six games.  

After a slow start offensively, Shayewitz and the Seawolves found themselves down 8-0 to begin the game as Dominguez Hills knocked down two quick three pointers and a layup to jump out to the early lead. After an early SSU timeout, the Toros would add to their lead and start the game on an 11-2 run before the first media timeout. Sonoma State had a near full squad for the first time in several weeks but the teams offensive rust was showing early on in the first half. The Seawolves were desperately in need of an offensive spark and boy would they get one from arguably their hottest scorer as of late in senior transfer Simon Ramirez. Ramirez has found himself in a comfortable role coming off the bench as he has averaged over 15 points in his last four games including a 19 point performance against the #4 ranked Coyotes last weekend. He would connect on a catch and shoot three from the wing in his first possession to cut the Toros lead down to seven. 

Minutes later Ramirez would roll off a screen and leak back out beyond the arc where Jake Salinero would whip a pass over his head for the pick and pop three. Ramirez would finish with a team high 12 points in the second half and single handingly pull the Seawolves back into the game before the break. After being down by as many as 13 in the first half, Santa Rosa JC transfer Damian Wallace would help cut the lead with under two minutes to play. The Seawolves defense would force a third straight turnover from the Toros and Wallace would take the lead pass from Jackie Luong straight to the bucket and get the foul. Despite missing the free throw, Wallace's fast break layup made it just a seven point game. After another late turnover from Dominguez Hills, Luong would connect on a huge catch and shoot three ball with just 15 seconds left to make it a four point game. Shayewitz and his group would stick in for the last possession and force a missed shot to end the half with some momentum. 

Things would change for the worst as the Toros came out on fire in the second half as they shot a game high 60% from the field making 18 of their 30 attempted shots in the second half. After Dominguez Hills came out and extended their lead to eight, Simon Ramirez would help stop the bleeding once again as he connected on back-to-back three's to make it a two point game. That's as close Sonoma State would get the rest of the way as the Toros began to light it up from downtown, connecting on 10 second half three pointers. Shooting guard Colten Kresl would put on a show as he dominated the second half finishing the game with 31 points and 9 three pointers. The Seawolves simply did not have an answer for Kresl as he went 11-17 from the field in 29 minutes of action. SSU played relatively clean basketball in the second half as they only committed 6 turnovers but Dominguez Hills was able to capitalize on those mistakes as they scored 21 points off of those Seawolf turnovers. 

Despite being known as one of the conference's best free throw shooting teams at 73%, SSU players struggled tonight as they finished 4-12 from the stripe leaving some extra points off the scoreboard. Tonight would be only the fifth time this season that SSU finished with less than 10 made free throws. The Toros were simply able to outshoot the Seawolves in the second half and SSU was unable to find a way to slow them down on the defensive side of the ball. 

Jaylen Wells continues to prove his consistency as a true freshman as he finished in double figures for the 7th time in his last 8 games for the Seawolves. He would record 15 points on 6-12 shooting. Damian Wallace was aggressive going to the rim all night as he finished with a career high 10 points. Wallace would hit the double digit mark for the first time this season and also add two steals and two assists to finish his night. Simon Ramirez continues to shock the conference and present problems for opposing teams as his scoring streak continued tonight. Ramirez finished with a team high 20 points as he connected on a season high five three pointers. Ramirez is now averaging over 10 points per game after seeing very little playing time to start the season and he finishes the night with his second 20-point game of the season. Ramirez continues to shoot the ball at an efficient rate and acts as a matchup nightmare for opposing teams when the Seawolves elect to go small. Despite scoring 11 more points in the second half compared to the first, the Toros would put up a 50-piece in the second half to put the game firmly out of reach.         

With the 65-81 loss to Dominguez Hills, Sonoma State now falls to 3-14 on the season and 3-8 in CCAA play. The Seawolves will travel back to the bay area but remain on the road to finish the weekend as they drive down to Cal State East Bay to face off against the Pioneers on Saturday, January 22nd. Live stats and stream links can be found at sonomaseawolves.com and all games can be streamed on the CCAA Network. Be sure to follow your Seawolves on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get all the latest SSU athletics updates and information. @SonomaSeawolves | #NomaNation