POMONA, Calif. – Five Pioneers scored in double figures as the Cal State East Bay men's basketball defeated California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Cal Poly Pomona 78-69 on the road Thursday night in Kellogg Arena.
 
It was the first victory for East Bay over Cal Poly Pomona under head coach Gus Argenal.
 
With the win CSUEB improves to 8-2 on the season and 2-1 in CCAA play.
 
In a game that saw both teams take a combined 63 foul shots, the Pioneers were able to get hot as they shot 61 percent from the field and 58.3 percent from long distance in the second half to come away with the conference victory.
 
Senior guard Jalen Richard led East Bay with a season-high 23 points, going 7-for-12 from the floor while knocking down a season-best five three-pointers. He added four assists, two rebounds and a team-high two steals.
 
Richard logged 39 minutes of action on the floor.
 
Freshman wing Druce Asah finished with 19 points, two rebounds and an assist in 35 minutes. Asah went 6-for-13 shooting from the field, while connecting on three shots from beyond the arc.
 
Senior forward Micah Dunhour paced the Pioneers with six rebounds. He added 13 points, three assists and a steal on 3-for-6 accuracy from the field and 7-for-8 from the free throw line. He tied the team-high with 39 minutes of game action.
 
Dunhour has now scored in double figures in eight consecutive games and in nine games total this season.
 
Sophomore point guard Juwan Anderson dished out a team-best five assists. He added two points, four rebounds and the Pioneers lone block of the game.
 
Anderson also tied the team lead with 39 minutes on the court.
 
Drew Bender led the East Bay bench with 11 points, all in the second half, three rebounds and two assists. Bender sunk nine of his 10 shots from the charity stripe, including four down the stretch to help seal the game for the Pioneers.
 
Senior Pierre Carter chipped in 10 points, three rebounds, and an assist off the bench for CSUEB. Carter went 4-for-8 from the court, including 2-for-3 from three-point land.
 
The Cal Poly Broncos won the battle in the paint outrebounding East Bay 33-28 and outscoring them in paint points 28-18.
 
But the Pioneers scored 14 points off 15 forced turnovers by the Broncos, including claiming their biggest lead of 14 midway through the second half.
 
CSUEB finished the game shooting 45.8 percent from the field for the game and 40 percent from three-point range.
 
Fourth year head coach Gus Argenal was proud of his team's performance as they picked up a big road CCAA win and his first victory over Cal Poly Pomona during his tenure at East Bay.
 
"Cal Poly Pomona is a program that I have a tremendous amount of respect for," Argenal said. "It took a lot of big plays and performances for us to withstand their runs. Any road win in the CCAA is a good one and I am proud of the team."
 
Jeremy Dennis lead Cal Poly Pomona with 21 points, five rebounds and three assists. Chris Sullivan added 11 points and five rebounds for the Broncos.
 
East Bay will have a quick turn around as they will visit Stanford for an exhibition game on Friday evening, December 16 at Maples Pavilion. The game will begin at 6:00 p.m.
 
The Pioneers will then return home for their first game in Pioneer Gymnasium since November 16, with their CCAA home opener against Cal State L.A. on Monday, December 19. It will be Faculty & Staff Appreciation Day in Pioneer Gymnasium. Tip off will be at 5:00 p.m.