CHICO, Calif. - Cal State East Bay men's basketball was unable to erase a halftime deficit on Thursday, as the Pioneers fell 82-71 in CCAA action against No. 23 Chico State. 
 

GAME SUMMARY

The Wildcats started the game on a 7-2 spurt capped by a Miles Daniels 3-pointer with 17:53 left in the half. The Pioneers would then answer with a 10-2 run, capped by a Grady Lewis layup, to lead 12-9. After CSUEB lead by four later in the half, Chico State went on a run, break a 19-19 tie to lead 21-19. Chico State led by as many as 15 points late in the first half, and ultimately led 45-33 at halftime. 
 
In the second half, the Wildcats would hold the Pioneers at arms' length. Chico State led by as many as 19 points, but the Pioneers climbed back to reduce the deficit to five points, including the 3:49 mark when Lewis made a layup as CSUEB trailed 69-64. However, Chico State was able to score the next two baskets, capitalize on most free throw opportunities down the stretch and finish with an 82-71 win over the Pioneers.
 

NOTABLE STATS

• Chris James scored 15 points to lead the Pioneers, going 7-for-11 from the floor and making one free throw.
• Reaching double figures in scoring with 13 points each were Lewis and Tyree Campbell, along with Dimitrios Klonaras with 11. 
• Lewis had a team-high seven rebounds. 
• Defensively, Lewis had a pair of blocks and a pair of steals and James had three steals. 
• Jojo Murphy had a game high 17 points for the Wildcats. 
• CSUEB had an advantage in field goal percentage, 50 to 47.5 percent. 
• The Pioneers had a 35-30 rebounding edge.  

RECORDS

Cal State East Bay: 12-8, 8-6 CCAA
No. 23 Chico State: 15-4, 10-4 CCAA
 

UP NEXT FOR CAL STATE EAST BAY

The Pioneers will head to Arcata for a CCAA matchup on Saturday at Cal Poly Humboldt. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. from Lumberjack Arena. On January 4, the Pioneers defeated the Lumberjacks, 78-67 in Hayward.