HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay men's basketball team fell to visiting San Francisco State on Tuesday night at Pioneer Gym, as the Gators pulled off a late comeback and defeated the Pioneers in overtime by a final score of 83-79. 

East Bay drops to 1-4 to start the 2017-18 season with a 1-2 mark in the team's first three California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) contests. SFSU, which last year finished 25-6, made the NCAA tournament, and spent most of the season ranked among the nation's top 25, improves to 4-1 after winning their conference opener.

The Pioneers did several things well in this game despite the frustrating result. Druce Asah had an impressive performance, scoring a game-high 23 points on 8-for-14 shooting and knocking down four three-pointers. Keyshawn Bruner (12 points, six rebounds, 5-9 FG) and Patrick Marr (10 points, five rebounds) turned in strong efforts off the bench.

East Bay was successful shooting from long distance as a team, finishing 12-for-30 (40 percent), and they defended the three-point line well, holding the Gators to 4-for-20 (20 percent). The Pioneers also finished with a 42-33 rebounding edge despite a noticeable height advantage for the visitors. 

SFSU was able to capitalize in the offensive interior however, as the Gators out-scored the Pioneers 40-24 in the paint. And although the foul totals were fairly even, SF State attempted more than twice as many free throws as East Bay did.

The difference in the game was CSUEB's inability to protect the ball, particularly once they got a lead. The Pioneers ended up turning the ball over 22 times in total, while forcing just 10 turnovers from the Gators. 

The first half was fairly tight. After the visitors grabbed an early 15-5 lead, Bruner and Marr keyed a 10-0 run by the Pioneers. The home team grabbed its first lead with 8:12 remaining in the frame and went into halftime ahead by five.

The second half was a story of scoring runs. The Pioneers came out hot and went on a 17-3 run over the span of six minutes to take a 19-point lead midway through the half. 

But after Marr drew a foul on a transition layup that made the score 59-40, the Gators called a timeout. When they came back out, Marr missed the free throw, SFSU's Chiefy Ogbaja quickly scored on the other end, and the Gators spent the next nine minutes chipping away at the Pioneer lead.

East Bay committed 12 of its 22 turnovers in the second half as SF State rallied back, and the Gators finally took the lead on a pair of free throws by Warren Jackson with one minute left in the game. Asah buried a long three on the next possession to put the Pioneers back up by two, then Jackson turned the ball over with 39 seconds left. But East Bay returned the favor, succumbing to full-court pressure and turning the ball over in the backcourt, which led to a game-tying dunk by the Gators with 27 seconds left. Asah had a decent look at a three-pointer in the final seconds, but it rimmed out, sending the teams to overtime. 

SF State carried over its momentum from tying up the game into overtime. They came out hot, hit a couple long balls, and snagged a 77-71 lead with under two minutes to play. The Pioneers got back within two, but the Gators managed to hit enough free throws to hang on.

Drew Bender scored eight points for the Pioneers, while Juwan Anderson, Deiondre Bird, Kyle Frakes, and Jordan Balser contributed six apiece. Anderson also led the way with seven assists, and Bird pulled in a team-high nine rebounds.

The Pioneers return to the court following Thanksgiving for a pair of non-conference games across the Bay. East Bay heads to Notre Dame de Namur to take on Argonauts Friday, followed by Holy Names on Saturday.