Box Score LA JOLLA, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay men's basketball team came up just short on the road Friday night, falling to UC San Diego 80-70 in front of a crowd of over 1,100 at RIMAC Arena. The Pioneers (6-7, 3-4 CCAA) led nearly the entire second half, but the Tritons (6-5, 2-5 CCAA) rallied in the final minues to hand East Bay its second conference loss in as many games away from Pioneer Gym.

Gabe Kindred scored 16 points on 6-for-9 shooting to lead the Pioneers, marking the eighth time in the past nine games the senior guard has been the team's top scorer. 

Mark Samuels added 14 points and seven rebounds in the loss. Fellow senior Ryan Hebebrand notched CSUEB's only double-double with 11 points and 10 boards, including a season-high six offensive rebounds. 

UCSD out-shot the Pioneers from the floor, 47.5 to 43.5 percent, for the game. The Tritons also bested East Bay in rebounding (42 to 32) and out-scored them 18 to 9 at the free throw line. The Pioneers struggled from behind the arc collectively, making just 7-of-24 three-pointers (29.2 percent).

Jarred Jourdan notched nine points on 4-for-8 from the field and led the team with four assists in 23 minutes off the bench. Jacari Whitfield added seven points and three assists. Kyle Frakes and Donavon Jackson contributed five points apiece, with Jackson grabbing four boards as well.

The action was tight in the first half as the teams traded leads several times. UCSD's biggest advantage was eight points with about five minutes left before halftime, but the Pioneers were able to rally back, and a three-pointer by Samuels with 35 seconds left made it a three-point game at the break.

Whitfield knocked down his only three of the game on the Pioneers' first possession of the second half. The next time down the court, Hebebrand grabbed an offensive rebound and scored on the putback to give East Bay a two-point lead. 

The Pioneers led for the next 15 minutes of game time -- though never by more than six points. The Tritons finally tied the score with 3:50 left on a pair of free throws by James Tillman, who finished with 23 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists for UCSD. Once the Tritons took the lead, they lever looked back, extending their advantage to double digits as East Bay was able to manage just one field goal in the final three minutes of play.

The Pioneers have a short bus trip tomorrow morning before an extremely tough matchup against No. 14 Cal State San Bernardino at 7:30 p.m. at Coussoulis Arena. CSUEB will be looking to match last year's 82-72 win at CSUSB.