SAN FRANCISCO-- The SF State Gators couldn't overcome a strong first half by the No. 17 UC San Diego Tritons this evening in a CCAA match-up at The Swamp at The Don Nasser Family Plaza as the Tritons won 73-48. Four players scored in double digits for the guests with
Jon McMurry pacing the Gator with 14 points off the bench.
"UC San Diego is good, the Tritons are a really good team," said head coach
Paul Trevor. "We tried to take away some of their shooters early, and every time we did that we would leave other guys open and they took advantage. I thought we played well as a team, we just had a much harder time taking advantage of our open looks, every time we would go on a little run, we couldn't hit that one shot that would get us over the hump and chip into their lead. They are a very physical team, and I don't think we matched up well with their physicality."
The Tritons (11-2, 6-1 CCAA) were led by Aleks Lipovic's 16 points on 4 of 6 shooting from the field while Adam Klie added 12 points. UC San Diego shot 54% from the field including 52% from three-point land while holding the Gators to just 26.8% shooting from the field.
The guests scored the first six points of the game capped by a three by Drew Dyer. A
Treaven Duffy free throw cut the deficit to 6-5, but the Tritons went on a 10-0 run to take a 16-5 lead capped by a Klie lay-up.
A three by Grant Jackson increased the Triton lead to 31-9 with 7:30 left in the half.
SF State though would not go away as the Gators cut the Triton lead to 35-20 heading in the locker room at the half.
A
Warren Jackson three in the first three minutes of the second half capped a 5-2 run by the Gators as they cut the deficit to 37-25. SF State (7-5, 1-5 CCAA) had a chance to cut to singles digits but they could not score on its next two possessions and the Tritons once again built their lead to 46-27.
SF State stayed around and cut the Triton lead to just 13 (53-40) on a three by McMurry with a little under seven minutes to go, but the Gators could not get over the hump as they increased their lead back to 19 (61-42) with five minutes left.
UC San Diego finished the game outscoring the Gators 12-6 to take the 73-48 victory.
The Gators' bench did outscore the Tritons 36-20 led by McMurry with 14 points and
Warren Jackson's 11 points.
"They gave us great energy, I really liked how Warren (Jacskon), Treaven (Duffy), Jon McMury, and
AJ Kahlon played, added Trevor. They gave us a huge lift, scoring 36 of our 48 points. It was really nice getting AJ back."
The Gators will return to the court this Saturday, January 9 at 7:30pm when they host Cal State San Bernardino. The Coyotes will face Sonoma State in Rohnert Park tomorrow evening before coming to The Swamp at The Don Nasser Family Plaza on Saturday.
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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.
