Dixie State could not hold on to a late second-half lead as the Trailblazers closed their three-game season-opening road trip with a 77-75 loss at Cal State LA Monday night inside the Eagles Nest.

Trailing 40-39 after the first 20 minutes of play, Dixie State (1-2) opened the second half on a 9-2 run, which culminated with a Trevor Hill (Sandy, Utah/Alta HS) 3-pointer that spotted the Trailblazers a six-point lead at 48-42 four minutes into the frame. DSU maintained its lead for most of the second half, extending it to as many as eight points at 69-61 following an Austin Montgomery (Lilburn, Ga./Lakeview Academy) dunk with 6:10 to go.

Following a Quincy Mathews (St. George, Utah/Desert Hills HS) jumper that made it a 73-66 game with 3:59 remaining, the Eagles (2-1) clawed back with seven-straight points over the next three minutes of play to square the game at 73-73 after a pair of Jalyn Pennie free throws.

Hill would give Dixie State the lead right back on the Trailblazers' ensuing possession when he banked in a 10-foot leaner from the right wing with 33 seconds left. However CSULA wrestled the lead away on its next trip down the court thanks to a Garrett Carter 3-pointer, which made it a 76-75 game with eight seconds to go.

Hill then took the inbounds pass, drove the length of the court and put up a 12-foot floater in the lane that bounced off the rim, forcing DSU to foul. Seconds after the foul was called, a CSULA fan came onto the court to celebrate thinking the game was over, though 1.3 seconds showed on the game clock.

However no technical foul was assessed, and Jihad Woods split a pair of CSULA free throws, while a DSU desperation heave from three-quarter court sailed wide as the final horn sounded.

Hill, Mathews and Montgomery each tallied 13 points to lead DSU offensively, while Isaiah Clark (Riverside, Calif./John W. North HS) added 12 points on 6-of-7 shooting. Hill, Clark and Mathews also collected seven rebounds apiece, and Hill finished with a game-high five assists.

DSU shot a season-high 50.8 percent (30-of-59) from the field, including a 37.5 percent clip (6-of-16) from the perimeter, and outrebounded the Eagles by a 43-28 count.

Carter hit four treys on the night as he led three Eagles in double figures with a game-high 16 points. CSULA hit on 48.2 percent (27-of-56) of its shots and went 9-of-25 (.360) from beyond the arc.

The Trailblazers will continue their season-long seven-game road swing to open the 2017-18 campaign this upcoming weekend in Monmouth Ore., at the Western Oregon Shootout. DSU will face Eastern New Mexico Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. (PT), followed by a date with the homestanding Wolves on Saturday at 3 p.m. (PT).