SEASIDE, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay men's basketball team fell on the road Saturday afternoon to Cal State Monterey Bay by a final score of 93-81 in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) competition. The Otters (6-4, 2-2 CCAA) evened the season series with the Pioneers (3-6, 1-3 CCAA), who claimed victory last Saturday in Hayward.

"This was an extremely hard fought game by both teams," said head coach Gus Argenal. "Monterey was efficient and their scorers made plays when they needed it. We played hard and competed on the road, but to win a game like this, we need to defend much better and have a mindset to get stops. That attitude was missing today."

The squads played each other tight for the second straight weekend, with East Bay leading for 18 of 20 minutes in the first half. They were up by as many as nine, riding the outside shooting of senior Nick Grieves, who had 10 points before halftime. But the home team made a late rally, out-scoring the Pioneers 14-4 over the final five minutes of the frame to take a 40-38 lead into the break.

Jacari Whitfield buried one of his four three-pointers on the first possession of the second half to put East Bay back up by one, but CSUMB's Jorey Scott quickly converted a layup on the other end to give the Otters the advantage. Monterey Bay led for the entire second half after that, holding off every attempt the Pioneers made to erase their deficit. 

Otter forward Greg Anderson finished with 22 points and 13 rebounds, helping CSUMB extend its lead to double figures late in the second half. The Otters out-shot the Pioneers 50 percent to 35 percent in the second half and 48 percent to 37 percent for the game. Monterey Bay also scored 12 more points at the foul line than East Bay, and grabbed 10 more rebounds. The Pioneers were able to keep the game close thanks to 17 forced turnovers, but 93 is their highest point total allowed in 2014-15.

Whitfield led all scorers with 23 points and added a team-high four assists. Grieves finished with 18 points on 6-for-15 shooting in 23 minutes off the bench. 

Senior Cody Kale also reached double figures with 10 points, going 5-for-9 from the floor with five rebounds and three assists. Fellow senior Jarred Jourdan added nine points in defeat.

Junior Jack Pasquini, who entered the game as the CCAA's leading rebounder, recorded his fourth double-digit performance with 11 boards. He also scored eight points, including two buckets from beyond the arc.

Sophomore Kyle Frakes had seven points, seven rebounds, and a season-high four blocks. Freshman Patrick Marr added five points and five rebounds.

"As a whole, we have improved a lot in these first nine games, and I believe in this group" Argenal added.

The Pioneers are still in search of their first victory in an opponent's gym this season. They'll attempt to end that streak a week from Tuesday on Dec. 30 when they travel south to play Division I Cal State Fullerton at 7 p.m.