SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., -- The Cal State East Bay men's basketball team suffered a tough, 81-73 road defeat to San Francisco State on Friday night, January 19 in The Swamp.
 
It was the third consecutive loss for the Pioneers as they fall to 8-11 on the season and 4-9 in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) play. CSUEB was also swept in their season series with SF State after having already loss to the Gators, 83-79 in Hayward during the Thanksgiving break.
 
East Bay got off to a hot start as sophomore guard Druce Asah (Tracy, Calif.) scored six of the first 10 Pioneer points highlighted by two three-point field goals. CSUEB would find themselves up by 12 points midway through the opening half after junior point guard Juwan Anderson (Oakland, Calif.) knocked down two three-pointers of his own.
 
Druce Asah would finish the game with a team-high 18 points and a steal, while hitting three shots from beyond the arc. Asah went 5-for-6 from the foul line in 31 minutes of action.
 
Juwan Anderson contributed in all facets of the game scoring a season-best 17 points on 6-for-11 shooting from the floor, with a impressive 2-for-3 night from three-point range. Anderson dished out a team-best four assists, collected six rebounds and added a steal. He went a perfect 3-for-3 from the charity stripe in 32 minutes of action.
 
The Gators would battle back to pull within single digits, but the Pioneers would rally to push it to a 10-point halftime lead. East Bay shot 48.1% (13-for-27) from the field, while connecting on 50% of their shots from long range (6-for-12) before the intermission.
 
Cal State East Bay's tough first half defense limited the Gators to just 40.7% (11-for-27) from the field. San Francisco State went 1-for-8 (12.5%) from beyond the arc while only grabbing 12 rebounds to 18 for CSUEB.
 
The Pioneers would start the second half similar to the first with four quick points from senior center Kyle Frakes (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) as they claimed their largest lead of 14 with 17:00 minutes left to go in the game.
 
Frakes just narrowly missed his second straight game with a double double after notching 10 points and nine rebounds in 27 minutes.
 
SF State would outscore East Bay 52-34 in the second half of play as they dominated East Bay on the boards 20-11 while shooting 57.7% (15-for-26) from the field. The Gators would go on a 8-0 run between the 8:28 and 6:36 mark in the game to pull within four. Then a 10-0 run from the 5:39 and 2:21 point in the game all but sealed the victory for the Gators.
 
The Pioneers fell cold from the field going 0-for-6 from three-point land and 11-for-27 (40.7%) total in the second half. SF State compiled 40 points in the painted area to just 16 from the Pioneers.
 
Despite being the outscored 30-19 in bench production, a couple East Bay reserves turned in solid performances. Jordan Balser (Auburn, Calif.) tallied none points, four rebounds and three assists in 25 minutes on the court. Jelani Mitchell (Pasadena, Calif.) chipped in eight points, two rebounds and a steal in 14 minutes.
 
The Pioneers will look to bounce back tomorrow night and sweep the season series against Sonoma State as East Bay travel to the Wolves' Den for a Saturday night CCAA showdown. Tipoff will be at 7:30 p.m.