ROHNERT PARK, CALIF. - On Thursday, November 30th, the Sonoma State men's basketball team would get out to a quick 12-point lead over Dominguez Hills in just six minutes of action but see their lead shrink to only four by halftime. After a fast start offensively, the Seawolves would shoot under 30% from the field and under 70% from the charity stripe in the second half to allow the Toros back in the game and pull away late, taking the conference opener 59-55.
This would go down as SSU's third straight loss, all by single digits, and their second straight loss by four points. Sonoma State's zone defense continues to pay dividends as they held Dominguez Hills to just 32% from the field but after four made three's in the first half, the Seawolves would go 1-for-9 in the second and struggle to maintain their early first half lead.
The game would have eleven lead changes all coming in the second half and SSU dominated time with the lead with over 25 minutes on the night. The Toros hung around though after the Seawolves cooled off and hit five triples in the second half to earn their first lead of the game.
With eight minutes to go, Sonoma State would look to grab their first real momentum of the second half with the dunk of the season thus far from LMU transfer
James Nobles. Nobles would pick the pocket of the Toros guard and take it the length of the floor and throw it down on top of a challenging Dominguez Hills defender to send the crowd into a frenzy.
After a Dominguez Hills turnover and foul on the following possession, second year point guard
Nick Medeiros would hit a pair of free throws to give SSU a four point lead, their largest of the half. However, back down the other way the Toros would drill a deep three ball from the top of the key to kill the momentum and cut the lead to one. They would go on to cash in two more huge three pointers in the final minutes to eventually take a one point lead.
With under two to play the Toros would grab control of the game with a crucial 6-0 run which included four made free throws and a missed SSU layup, allowing them to close out the game at the free throw line.
With 39 seconds on the clock, the Seawolves did cut the game to three with a pair of free throws from Nobles, but after forcing a missed layup Dominguez Hills would secure a massive offensive rebound and get fouled to ice the game at the line. They would make one of two and go on to win by four to hand Sonoma State their first conference loss of the season.
Despite foul trouble down the stretch, second year center
Dillon Iyawe was dominant inside once again. He finished with a team high 13 points on 63% shooting.
Andrew Henderson and
James Nobles were the other two double digit scorers for the Seawolves, combining for 21 points on the night. SSU would outscore the Toros bench 19-6 but just one three ball and five missed free throws in the second half wouldn't allow them to hold on for the win.
LOOKING AHEAD
Sonoma State falls to 3-3 overall and 0-1 in conference play. They will finish out the weekend and seek their first conference win on Saturday against Cal State LA. Tip-off is scheduled for 3:00 PM and tickets can be bought online at sonomaseawolves.com/tickets. You can also stream the game LIVE 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. Sonoma State athletics also has launched a new fan app in partnership with From Now On. Download the free app today in both the Apple and Google Play stores by searching Sonoma State Seawolves in the app store. @SonomaSeawolves | #NomaNation
