LA JOLLA, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay men's basketball team was defeated on the road by UC San Diego Saturday night in the final game of the 2018-19 regular season, as the Tritons pulled away late to win by a final score of 79-57 at RIMAC Arena.

The Pioneers fall just one game short of capturing a share of the conference title, but for the first time since joining the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), the conclusion of the schedule does not mark the end of season for East Bay.

CSUEB has earned the No. 3 seed in the their first-ever appearance in the CCAA Tournament after posting a 16-6 conference record and finishing 21-7 overall. They will host the No. 6 seed, Cal State Dominguez Hills, in the first round Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. in Pioneer Gym.

Despite the final score, Saturday's game was tightly-contested most of the way. UCSD forward Chris Hansen knocked down three triples in the first four minutes as the Tritons jumped out to a 13-6 lead, but the Pioneers quickly righted the ship and trailed by just five at halftime.

East Bay had a tougher time getting shots to fall in the second half and hit just 31 percent of their field goals over the final 20 minutes. Meanwhile, they struggled to contain Hansen (who tallied 26 points) as well as Christian Bayne and Tyrell Roberts (19 points each). The UCSD shooters seemed to get hotter as the game progressed. And although the Pioneers have had success playing from behind this season, their deficit soon became too much to overcome.

Senior Juwan Anderson had a big game offensively, going 3-for-6 from long range and notching a team-high 18 points. Nai Carlisle was the only other Pioneer in double figures with 11.

In addition to improving their shooting efficiency, the Pioneers will have to be more effective on the boards if they get another shot at UCSD during next week's conference tournament. The Tritons finished with a 43-29 rebounding advantage, led by Hansen with 11. 

The regular season did not finish the way the Pioneers hoped with two losses on this final road trip, but it's important to note that this squad has already posted by far the program's most successful season as members of the CCAA. The CCAA playoffs are coming to Hayward next week, and for the first time, Cal State East Bay has a chance to lace 'em up and compete for a championship.