Box Score HAYWARD, Calif. -- Despite a hot start and an early lead, the Cal State East Bay men's basketball team came up short on Saturday night at Pioneer Gym, falling in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) play to an extremely talented Chico State team by a final score of 77-65.

The loss drops the Pioneers to 5-6 overall and 2-4 in CCAA games with one contest remaining on their schedule in the calendar year.

The first half of the opening period was an impressive showing for East Bay, which entered the night coming off a fantastic win on the road at Western Washington on Tuesday. They used a 14-2 run to grab a 27-14 lead 10 minutes into the game, controlling the momentum and playing outstanding defense.

But after a timeout, Chico State switched to a zone defense to force the Pioneers into tougher shots, and the Wildcats answered with a 15-0 run of their own over the next fine minutes of game time. The teams went into halftime with the visitors leading 36-30. 

The Wildcats stretched their lead out to 14 early in the second half, but East Bay refused to let the game slip away that easily. After a CSUEB timeout, Druce Asah caught fire and scored 11 points in less than two minutes as the Pioneers rattled off a 13-0 run to pull within one point at 51-50. 

Unfortunately, that was as close as they would get. Chico buried a three-pointer on their next possession, and slowly pulled away over the final 10 minutes to notch the 12-point victory.

The Pioneers shot well enough from long distance to keep themselves in the game (10-for-25), but overall they were bested by the Wildcats in field goal percentage (49 to 41 percent), rebounds (34 to 29), and turnovers (15 to 10). East Bay was also whistled for more than twice as many fouls as Chico, attempting nearly half as many free throws.

Asah finished 5-for-8 from long range and matched his season high with 23 points to lead all scorers in the game. 

Newcomer Deiondre Bird had another impressive effort, filling up the scoresheet with 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting to go along with three assists. He also posted teams highs with five rebounds and three steals. 

Jordan Balser was the third Pioneer to reach double figures, tallying 11 points and knocking down 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. Fellow guard Juawn Anderson added five points and a team-high five assists. 

East Bay is back in action on Tuesday when the team welcomes in Pacific Union for a conference game at 6:00 p.m. in Pioneer Gymnasium. It will be CSUEB's final contest before returning to CCAA play on Jan. 2.