California Baptist University
6-2,1-1WAC
Utah Tech
5-3,2-0WAC
A 30-point Performance by Daniels Jr. not Enough in Close Loss to Utah Tech
12/6/2023 10:41:00 PM | Men's Basketball
RIVERSIDE--- On Wednesday night, The California Baptist University men's basketball team's comeback came up short in a 72-69 loss to the Utah Tech Trailblazers. The loss dropped the Lancers to 6-2 on the season and evened up their conference record at 1-1.
Meanwhile, Utah Tech remains perfect in Western Athletic Conference play to open the season and improve to 5-3 on the young season.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Trailblazers and Lancers both jumped out to rocky starts, combining for 12 points through the first seven minutes of play. Utah Tech shook off their sluggish start and would hit on 68% of their first-half shots, pushing their lead to eight points with one minute remaining in the half. The Trailblazers maintained control of the first half through its entirety and banked in a 35-foot triple to expand their lead to 15 heading into halftime.
The Lancers could not find any offensive rhythm in the opening half, shooting 38% from the field and only connecting on one triple. Dominique Daniels Jr. and Tylen Riley were the bright spots offensively for the Lancers, combining for 18 of the team's 26 first-half points on eight made field goals.
The Lancers got busy chipping away at the deficit, scoring on their first two possessions. The Trailblazers kept CBU at arm's length, countering multiple Lancer runs through the beginning of the second half. However, CBU did not give in to Utah Tech's pressure and went on an 8-0 run to cut the deficit to four with nine minutes remaining. The run was highlighted by back-to-back triples by Brantly Stevenson and a layup by Blondeau Tchoukuiegno.
Utah Tech would once again counter the Lancer attack, this time with a 6-0 run of their own to push the lead to nine with under four minutes left. The Lancers again showed resilience and cut the Trailblazers to one with 14 seconds remaining behind some late-game heroics by Daniels. Both teams exchanged turnovers in the waning seconds, and a pair of missed triples by the Lancers would ultimately produce the final 72-69 score.
STATISTICAL NOTABLES:
Despite the loss, Daniels Jr. produced a new season-high with 30 points on ten made field goals. Daniels scored 20 of his points in the second half to help keep the Lancers in striking distance and gave them a chance to win the game. Daniels is just the fifth Lancers to score 30 or more in a single game in the DI era and the first to do it against a DI opponent since December 2020.
The Lancers continued its impressive performance on the glass, with 33 more rebounds in this game, including a 14-4 advantage on the offensive boards. CBU came into the matchup 25th in the nation in rebounding and was led tonight by Yvan Ouedraogo with ten.
NEXT: The Lancers will hit the road to take on PAC-12 foe Oregon on Tuesday, December 12, with tip-off set for 7 P.M. PT.
