SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — On Saturday afternoon inside Coussoulis Arena, No. 3 Cal State East Bay kept its perfect season intact with an 82-79 road win over Cal State San Bernardino, extending its winning streak to 20 games and remaining one of two unbeaten teams in Division II.
The Pioneers absorbed an early punch, rallied through a second-half surge and then made the final defensive stand when it mattered most, with Jaayden Bush's late free throws and a last-second block by Ramsey Huff sealing the victory.
The game was even early, tied 13-13, before the Coyotes grabbed momentum on an Aidan Fowler 3-pointer at the 11:18 mark of the first half. Cal State San Bernardino controlled the tempo from there, pushing its lead as high as 10 points. Cal State East Bay stayed within striking distance behind timely shooting from beyond the arc by Ramsey Huff and Tyree Campbell. In the final moments of the half, Amare Campbell sliced through the defense for a layup that trimmed the deficit to 41-36 at the break.
Coming out of halftime, the Pioneers (20-0) went to work methodically. A defensive stop turned into transition offense, and the visitors rattled off eight unanswered points. Jaaden Bush capped the run with a layup at the 13:13 mark of the second half, giving East Bay its first lead since the opening minutes, 49-47. The momentum continued to build, and Matthew Williams knocked down a shot from beyond the arc to stretch the lead to 67-56 with 8:16 remaining.
The Coyotes answered with a 9-0 run to pull back within reach, and the game tightened into a possession-by-possession battle down the stretch. With 1:09 left, East Bay clung to a one-possession lead. Cal State San Bernardino had chances to reclaim the advantage, but the Pioneers stood firm defensively. A Zion Paleo 3-pointer with four seconds remaining cut the margin to 80-79, but Bush calmly buried a pair of free throws. On the final heave, Huff rose to meet the shot, blocking it nearly at the buzzer to secure the 82-79 win.
Tyree Campbell led Cal State East Bay with 16 points, shooting 6-for-11 from the floor and 3-for-4 from beyond the arc. Amare Campbell added 15 points, while Jalen Foy chipped in 12. Amare Campbell also led the team on the glass with six rebounds, Foy dished out five assists, and Huff finished with a block and a pair of steals. East Bay shot 47.3 percent from the field compared to 44.1 percent for the Coyotes, while Cal State San Bernardino held a 42-31 edge on the boards.
"Tremendous fight by our guys tonight," head coach Bryan Rooney said. "There were multiple times in the game when we could have splintered. Instead, as our team has done all year, we stayed together and earned a tough road win. Fired up to be back home next week."
Cal State East Bay returns to Hayward for its next contest, hosting Cal State LA at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 5, inside Pioneer Gymnasium. The teams last met Dec. 21, when the Pioneers earned a 77-69 win behind a memorable second-half comeback.
