[PREVIEW] PacWest play continues for Red Storm against Point Loma

Sea Lions visit Burns for first time in league action

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Dixie State (5-3, 2-1 PWC) vs. Point Loma (2-5, 0-1 PWC)
Game Details	Saturday, Dec. 15 \| Saint George, UT \| 7:30 p.m. MST Burns Arena
Game Coverage	TV: None \| Radio: ESPN SportsRadio \| 1210AM and 107.3/102.3 FM Dixie State All Access: Audio and Video Live Stats: Red Storm Live Stats Twitter: @DixieAthletics #DSCmbb
Dixie State Links	Notes \| Roster \| Schedule
PNLU Links	Notes \| Roster \| Schedule

SEA LIONS ROAR INTO THE BURNS: Dixie State College looks to get back into the win column in Pacific West Conference play when they host Point Loma Nazarene on Saturday, Dec. 15 at 7:30 p.m. Saturday's game will be the only game this week to pit a pair of league opponent against each other.

STORM WATCH: DSC is 5-3 on the season and 2-1 in the PacWest after dropping an 82-80 game on a buzzer beater at Fresno Pacific. In four of the last five season, DSC's first PacWest loss has come on the road. The dissenting game of the trend - 1/8/11 in the Burns against Grand Canyon (71-68).

ALL-TIME vs. PLNU: Saturday's matchup will be the first in the Division II tenure for Dixie State against the Sea Lions.

LAST TIME OUT: Dating back to the exhibition season, all but one of Dixie State College's losses have a similar theme – the loss of a lead in the final minutes. Saturday night was no different.
Fresno Pacific's Malcolm Griffin knocked home a baseline floater to beat the buzzer and hand the Red Storm an 82-80 loss in league play.

Dixie State drops its third straight road game and first in Pacific West Conference action (5-3, 2-1) after holding a five-point lead with 3:17 left in the second half. The Sunbirds improved to 6-4 and 1-1 in the PacWest.

The Storm scored one point over the final minutes and was forced in to three turnovers.

“On the road, you have to be tougher,” Dixie State head coach Jon Judkins said. “You have to be a mean guy sometimes. We were expecting fouls to get called instead of going inside and forcing the action.”

Inside the pain is where Zach Robbins (Upland, CA/Upland) (Upland, CA/Upland) excelled against the Sunbirds. The reigning PWC Player of the Week set career-highs with 26 points (on 13-of-18 shooting) and 18 rebounds. Derek Owen (St George, UT/Dixie) (St George, UT/Dixie) added eight points and seven boards.

Dalton Groskreutz (Santa Clara, UT/Snow Canyon) (Santa Clara, UT/Snow Canyon) and McKay Massey (Payson, UT/Payson) (Payson, UT/Payson) each added 15 points.
FPU answered the call after Dixie State had a pair of five-point advantages early. A 15-5 spurt sparked by the play off the bench by Trevon Clayton and a massive dunk by Antonio Credit gave the Sunbirds a lead.

Dixie State chipped away as the first half came to a close. FPU guard John Taylor hit a rainbow three with nine second before the break to snatch momentum, only to have Massey find space on the wing and drain a rebuttal triple to knot the halftime score at 45-45.

In a reversal from the first half, FPU too as much as a six-point lead early in the second half and kept control of the scoreboard until the Red Storm tied the game back up at 69-69 on a Steven Larson (South Jordan, UT/Copper Hills) layup. The bucket, part of a 9-1 run, sparked the DSC offense.

Up five, FPU's press forced DSC point guard Kimball Payne (Alpine, UT/Lone Peak) (Alpine, UT/Lone Peak) into three late turnovers. Over the final span, the Storm only took two field goal shots, both which were missed.

Griffin scored 16 of his team-leading 22 points in the second half, including three triples. He took the outlet pass after an Owen free-throw attempt to give DSC the lead fell off the rim and drove up the right sideline. With his defender beat, the guard/forward pulled up near the right elbow and floated home the game-winner.

Griffin led five Sunbird players in double figures. Credit notched a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds.

• POINT LOMA NAZARENE SEA LIONS
> The Sea Lions are 2-5, 0-1 PacWest after dropping its last three games. PLNU lost to Azusa Pacific at home 51-50 in its first PWC game on Dec. 1 and then lost a road non-conference game to CSU San Marcos, 51-46 on Dec. 5.

> Point Loma was selected to finish 9th in the PWC Preseason Poll. They do not have a player averaging more than 8.0 PPG (Todd Campbell).

> Bill Carr is in his second year at PLNU. He has had prior head coach and assistant jobs at University of San Diego, UC San Diego and Spring Hill College (AL).

JUDKINS ON THE SEA LIONS: They are very physical amd like to walk the ball up the court. They run the Princeton offense - hard cuts and back doors. They are better than their record shows.

PLNU's LAST GAME RECAP (Courtesy PLNU Sports Information - Danny Barnts): Danny Redmon scored 24 points to help Cal State San Marcos squeak by the Point Loma men's basketball team in a non-conference game, 51-46, on Wednesday, Dec. 5.

Redmon was a big factor in helping the Cougars (8-3) overcome the Sea Lions' (2-5, 0-1 PacWest) plus-16 advantage on the boards.

AJ Ussery led PLNU with 11 points, while Todd Campbell added eight points and a team-leading eight rebounds.
The Sea Lions used an 8-0 run late in the first half to take a 23-20 lead into halftime. They would then score the first seven points of the second period to go up by 10 (30-20). Redmon would then score 12 of the next 14 points for the Cougars, while leading them on a 18-3 run, to put them up for good at the 11:54 mark. Point Loma would cut the lead back to one on a jumper by Ussery with 7:50 remaining but it would never again take the lead.

The 51 points was a season-low for Cal State San Marcos which entered the game averaging 81.1 points per game. PLNU was hurt by a season-high 23 turnovers.

ZACH ATTACK - PART TWO: Dixie State sophomore forward/center Zach Robbins (Upland, CA/Upland) (Upland, CA/Upland) repeated as the Pacific West Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Week.

The conference announced the award on Monday, Dec. 10, for games played Dec. 3-9.

During the Red Storm's 1-1 week that featured an 87-78 win vs. Chaminade on Dec. 3 and an 82-80 loss at the buzzer at Fresno Pacific on Dec. 8, Robbins was dominant at both ends of the court. He averaged 19.0 points and 13.0 rebounds per game, including 10.5 boards on the defensive glass.

He set career highs with 26 points and 18 rebounds in the weekend loss to FPU.

Robbins tied for fourth in scoring for the week and shared the top spot in rebounding while shooting 75.0% (18 for 24) from the field.

He tied for fifth in field goal percentage and tied for seventh in steals per game for the week (2.0) in the PacWest.

Joining Robbins in the league's weekly honors is McKay Massey (Payson, UT/Payson):

McKay Massey (Payson, UT/Payson) (Sr., 6-2, 185, G, Payson, UT/Payson) – Dixie State – averaged 16.0 points and 5.0 assists per game in a 1-1 week for the Red Storm…tied for 11th in scoring and in assist average for the week in the PacWest…shot 61.1% (11 for 18) from the field (14th)…tied for seventh in assist/turnover ratio (2.0)…shot 66.7% (6 for 9) from beyond the arc…tied for 12th in three-point shooting for the week in the PacWest.

It is the second weekly honor for Massey after a Fantastic 15 nod in week one.

WEST REGION AND OPPONENTS IN TOP 25: Dixie State has dropped out of the group receiving votes in the National Association of Basketball Coaches poll, but other West region and common oppoents are highlighted. The defending national champions of Western Washington are the highest ranking West Region team at No. 6. Two other Western teams are also in the Top 25 - Cal Poly Pomona (8), Seattle Pacific (9). Alaska-Anchorage (25). CSU San Bernardino and Grand Canyon received votes. Colorado Mesa jumped up to No. 30.

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