Stan Plewe/Utah Tech Athletics

Box Score

Cal Baptist CBU-MBB 26-6

Dixie State DX-MBB 18-9

Cal Baptist CBU-MBB

26-6

Final

Mar. 04, 2016

Dixie State DX-MBB

18-9

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Cal Baptist CBU-MBB	46	44	90
Dixie State DX-MBB	36	37	73

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 3/4/2016 8:38:00 PM | By DSU Athletics Media Relations

Storm Men fall to CBU in PacWest semifinals

DSU now awaits NCAA Tourney fate on Sunday; Ogden Jr., Sawyer move up the DSU record books

The Dixie State men's basketball team dropped its Pacific West Conference tournament semifinal matchup, 90-73, to California Baptist on Friday in Irvine, California.

The Red Storm (18-9, 15-5 PacWest), who earned a first round bye with a win over Concordia on Saturday, took their first lead of the game at 4-3 when Mark Ogden Jr. (Spring Valley, Calif./Steele Canyon HS) slammed home a Robbie Nielson (Gresham, Ore./Barlow HS) miss. Ogden finished the game with 10 rebounds to move to 276 rebounds on the season and become the sole leader at DSU in single-season rebounding. The teams traded baskets through the next four minutes of the opening half before DSU built a game-high lead at 13-7 following a 5-0 run capped by a Zac Hunter (American Fork, Utah/American Fork HS) free throw.

CBU guard Jordan Heading stopped the run with his first 3-pointer of the game, but a pair of Robbie Nielson (Gresham, Ore./Barlow HS) free throws and a Hunter layup pushed the lead back to 17-12 in favor of the Storm. The Lancers responded with a 15-4 run featuring 3-pointers from three different players to take a 27-21 lead with 7:30 remaining in the first half.

The Red Storm pulled within 36-33 when Trevor Hill (Sandy, Utah/Alta HS) drained a pair of free throws and scored in the paint on the next DSU possession. But CBU responded again, this time with a 10-3 run to take a 46-36 lead into the halftime break.

CBU maintained a double-digit lead through the first three minutes of the second half, leading by 10 points with 16:59 remaining until Mason Sawyer (West Jordan, Utah/West Jordan HS) canned his first triple of the game to cut the lead to 53-46. Sawyer's trey and another one later in the game moved him into sole possession of the second spot in all-time 3-pointers made at DSU with 132.
Fueled by Sawyer's 3-pointer, the Storm began to chip away at the lead and used a 10-1 run to tie the game at 60-60 with 9:45 to play.

Dixie State tied the game without the services of Ogden, who fouled out in the middle of the run when he was assessed with a technical foul after getting tangled up with CBU guard Gelaun Wheelwright. Ogden was called for his fourth foul on the play going after a miss by Hill, and with the ensuing technical foul was forced to watch the final 12 minutes from the bench.

DSU tied the game again at 62-62 two minutes later, and the Storm seemed poised to take control of the game. But chaos again ensued when Josh Fuller (Rexburg, Idaho/Madison HS) fouled out on the next play. Following the play, Dixie State head coach Jon Judkins, in an attempt to correct a missed defensive assignment, stomped his foot, then shouted at his players to get their attention. Judkins was whistled for a technical foul when the referee thought the coach was yelling at him.

Wheelwright promptly stepped to line and knocked down three out of four free throws, sparking a 13-2 run for the Lancers, a run the Storm could not overcome. CBU continued the run, outscoring DSU 28-11 over the final eight minutes of the game.

"It was a tough game," head coach Jon Judkins said. "We battled back from the big deficit with our full court press, but we ran out of gas down the stretch. I'm proud of these guys to finish the way they did, winning nine of our last 10 games to get a No. 2 seed in the PacWest tournament. Now we're watching the screen and hoping the teams ahead of us in the region rankings win their tournaments so we can get in the NCAA tournament and keep playing."

Dixie State shot 41 percent (26-of-63) from the field, 30 percent (3-of-10) from beyond the arc, and 66 percent (18-of-27) from the free throw line. Hunter led four DSU players in double figures, matching his career high with 15 points and five rebounds. Hill also finished with 15 points, while Fuller and Nielson added 10 points each.

The Red Storm will now wait until Sunday to learn if they are awarded an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament.

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