HAYWARD, Calif. -- After dropping two games in Southern California last week, the Cal State East Bay men's basketball team will enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday, then continue to rack up the travel miles as they head to Chico to participate in the Mac Martin Invitational. They take on Simpson University on Friday and Seattle Pacific on Saturday, with both games are set to tip-off at 5:30 p.m.

The Pioneers fought hard in Riverside on Thursday, but in the end lost 84-68 to Cal Baptist, which entered the week ranked No. 11 in the nation and No. 1 in the West Region.  Junior transfer Jalen Richard continued his strong start to the season, netting 21 points on 8-for-17 shooting to go with three assists and a steal. Jack Pasquini had eight points and led the Pioneers with eight rebounds, and fellow senior Alex Carmon had 14 points on 5-of-11 from the field in 29 minutes. The Pioneers were fantastic  from long distance, going 8-for-13 (61.5 percent).

The team then headed south to San Diego to square off against Point Loma Nazarene on Saturday. The Pioneers out-scoring the Sea Lions the second half, 50-49, but were doomed by a 42-26 Point Loma advantage in the first half. PLNU ultimately picked up a 91-76 win in their homecoming game.

Richard once again led East Bay in scoring with 19 points on 5-of-8 shooting in 32 minutes. Pasquini also had a big game, scoring 16 and grabbing seven boards in 28 minutes. Junior guard Paramvir Singh came off the bench and poured in seven points and handled six rebounds in just seven minutes.

First up for the Pioneers in the Mac Martin Invitational is Simpson University of Redding. The Red Hawks have had a rough start to the season, losing 10 of their first 11. They spent last weekend in Salem, Ore. at the Corbin Classic. Friday, they lost to Corbin University, 94-69. Saturday, they were defeated by Lewis and Clark State, 102-58. The Red Hawks are led by senior guard Jacob Kaler, who averages 20 points per game. Freshman forward/center Josh Brakkee, is averaging 13 points and 7.6 rebounds

The Pioneers will wrap up the weekend with a tough contest against perennial West Region power Seattle Pacific. The Falcons are ranked sixth in the West this week and are off to a 3-1 start. They spent last weekend hosting their own tournament and won both games. On Friday, they defeated BYU-Hawaii in imoressive fashion, 84-60. The next day, they tamed Hawaii-Hilo, 86-73. Brendan Carroll leads the Falcons in scoring at 20.5 points per game, while senior Bryce Leavitt averages 12.5 points and 7.0 rebounds.