Despite a late second-half rally, Dixie State dropped its season opener at UC San Diego, 62-55, as part of the CCAA/PacWest Challenge Friday night in La Jolla, Calif.

The Trailblazers (0-1) struggled out of the gate as DSU missed 11 of its first 12 shots and committed six early turnovers to trail 25-9 through the first 12 minutes of play. The Tritons (1-0) would push that advantage to as many as 18 points before settling for a 41-28 lead at intermission.

Dixie State stayed within striking distance throughout the second half, eventually whittling the deficit down to five points at 53-48 with 4:52 to play after a Zac Hunter (American Fork, Utah/American Fork HS) 3-pointer and two Brandon Simister (St. George, Utah/Desert Hills HS) free throws.

UCSD answered with five-straight points to push its lead back to double digits at 58-48, but again the Trailblazers would rally with a 7-0 spurt thanks in part to a Josh Fuller (Rexburg, Idaho/Madison HS) lay-in and four Trevor Hill (Sandy, Utah/Alta HS) points, including a thunderous dunk that made it a one-possession game at 58-55 with 1:55 to go.

However that would be as close as Dixie State would get as the Tritons held the Trailblazers scoreless the rest of the way to escape with the seven-point win.

Hill led all scorers with 18 points to go along with seven rebounds, two steals and one assist, while Fuller posted a double-double with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Quincy Mathews (St. George, Utah/Desert Hills HS) also recorded his first career double-double with a career-high 11 rebounds and a career-high tying 10 points.

Dixie State struggled from the field as the Trailblazers shot 27.6 percent (16-of-58) from the floor, including a 1-of-9 clip from the perimeter. However DSU's cold shooting night was offset by DSU going 22-of-32 (.688) from the foul line. 

UC San Diego shot 36.1 percent (22-of-61) from the field, though the Tritons were just 6-of-27 (.222) from the perimeter, and UCSD outrebounded DSU 46-44. Adam Klie led three Tritons in double figures with 16 points.

Dixie State will turn around to face Cal Poly Pomona in the second day of the CCAA/PacWest Challenge Saturday afternoon at 5:30 p.m. (PT) inside the UCSD RIMAC Arena.