Box score

HAYWARD, Calif. - Playing without fifth-year senior Will Freedman due to a high ankle sprain, the Pioneers put up a tremendous performance to defeat Chico State, 72-66, before 483 fans in Pioneer Gym on February 10.

The victory improves the Pioneers' CCAA record to 2-15 and 4-17 overall. Chico State drops to 7-10 in CCAA play and 11-10 for the season.

The Pioneers' Donavon Jackson played his best game of the season recording a double-double with a game-high 19 points and 11 rebounds.

“I give a lot of credit to my coaches who helped me with my jump shot in practice,” Jackson said. "As a team, we won this game for Will Freedman. We had the right mindset going into this game and came ready to attack.”

Mark Samuels followed with 18 points while Roshun Wynne and Jared Waters added 12 each. Wynne and Waters also pulled down seven rebounds. Rodrigue Maza contributed to the Pioneer victory with seven points.

“This was a fantastic team effort,” Pioneer coach Will Biggs said. " We missed Will Freedman, but a lot of players made contributions in the victory. Tonight, we hit big shots and played well. Donavon Jackson had a huge game.”

Chico State led 23-17 with 8:11 left in the first half. The Pioneers tied the game at 25-25 with 4:29 remaining. Chico State outscored East Bay 12-9 to take a 37-34 lead at halftime.

The score was tied seven times during the second half. A jumper by Maza gave the Pioneers a 42-40 lead at the 17:25 mark. East Bay increased its advantage to 48-44 with 13:37 on a Samuels' layup. The Wildcats went on a 16-10 run to regain the lead 56-52 with 7:10 remaining.

East Bay went ahead for good 60-58 on a Wynne three-point play with 2:46 left. The Pioneers put the game away in the final 14 seconds on a pair of free throws by Wynne and Waters.

The Pioneers will play their final home game of the season on Saturday, February 12 when they take on Cal State Stanislaus at 7:30 p.m. The Pioneers will honor seniors Will Freedman and Jared Waters.