CHICO – Playing in his home town, senior guard Bren Haley followed up a solid performance from the previous night with an even better one.  The native of Chico scored a career-high 15 as the Gators held on to defeat Dominican 63-58 Saturday night at Acker Gym.
 
Unlike the previous evening, the Gators came out hot from the field, shooting 44.4 percent from the floor going 12-for-27, the big difference in the game was the defensive pressure the Gators applied to their oppoent.  The Gators forced 11 first half turnovers by the Penguins (3-4) which turned into 10 points for the Gators (2-2).
 
The 10 points would be the difference as the two teams went into their respective locker rooms, with the Gators leading 33-23 at the half.  Andre Jones along with Floyd Wormley and Udun Osakue helped propel the Gators to their lead.  The trio scored eight, seven and six points respectively. 
 
Around the 15 minute mark in the opening half Jones really came alive for the Gators.  Over the span of 30 seconds he hit a three to briefly give the Gators the lead and followed that up with a two point bucket to tie the game, 12-12.  With 9:17 on the clock in the opening half Jones buried a three from the corner and put the Gators out front 23-20, SF State never looked back.
 
Out of the break is when Haley caught fire, scoring 13 of his 15 points after the intermission.  In the second period Haley shot 4-for-6 from the floor and 3-for-5 from behind the arc. 
 
After a steal by Wormley, his fourth of the night, Haley hit a wide open three on a fast break, 20 seconds later a steal by Osakue led to another fast break layup for Haley giving SF State their largest lead of the night, a 15 point cushion up 45-30 with 13:33 to play.
 
The Penguins would come back and make the game tense down the stretch.  Dominican twice cut the Gators lead to three and both times the Gators would hit a pair of free throws to get back up five.  The charity stripe proved crucial to the Gators in the second half.  SF State went 10-for-16 from the free throw line, led by Wormley's clutch 5-for-8 performance.
 
With 2:14 in the game a steal by Chiefy Ugbaja and a quick outlet pass to Osakue who threw it down for a dunk gave the Gators a seven point lead late effectively putting the game away as SF State would hit a series of free throws as Dominican tried to extend the game. 
 
With the win the Gators went 1-1 in the 55^th Carl's Jr. Mac Martin Invitational hosted by Chico State.  The Gators will return to action on Friday, December 5 when they begin CCAA action taking on Humboldt State at 7:30 p.m.

Complete Box Score (HTML)

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Gator Athletics has a proud tradition of competitive success within the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The department offers 12 intercollegiate sports programs: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Women's Track & Field, Women's Volleyball and Men's Wrestling.

Gator Athletics places great emphasis on academic performance as well as athletic achievement. The program offers student athletes the opportunity to reach their educational goals, as well pursue meaningful athletic accomplishments.  For more information, visit SF State Athletics' website, Twitter and Facebook pages.