Box Score The numbers were disquieting. Dominican University of California was off to its best start ever at 6-0 and averaging 91.7 points per game heading into its game at Chico State on opening night of the Carl's Jr. Mac Martin Invitational Friday.
The message was loud and clear. The Wildcats still have Dominican's number.
Chico State drubbed Dominican 86-56, dominating from the opening tip to improve to 9-0 all-time against the Penguins. Five Wildcats scored in double-figures thanks to fluid ball movement as they consistently made the extra pass and took care of the ball, dishing out 18 assists and committing only nine turnovers.
The Wildcats (3-1) will need a similar effort, if not an even better one, Saturday night against 9th-ranked Seattle Pacific. The Falcons hit 19-of-24 from the 3-point line and shot 65 percent to beat San Francisco State 101-96 in Friday's opening game.
Chico State faces the Falcons Saturday at 7:30, following the Dominican-San Francisco State showdown at 5:30.
The Wildcats raced to an 18-6 lead against Dominican and cruised to victory. They led 43-23 at the half and by 20 or more throughout the second stanza.
Giordano Estrada led Chico State with 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting from 3-point range, and Jordan Barton finished with a career-high 14 points. Jordan Semple came off the bench to score 13 points and pulled down a game-high eight rebounds as the Wildcats outrebounded Dominican 37-20. He also blocked a pair of shots to move into fourth on Chico State's career blocks list. Rashad Parker chipped in 12 points and Sean Park 10.
But what the Wildcats did on the defense end was the night's storyline. Chico State held Dominican scoring leader Devin Golston without a point and each of Penguins' starting five to below their season scoring average.
Chico State did so, in part, by keeping Dominican off the free throw line. The Penguins were averaging better than 32 attempts per contest coming in. Friday they attempted just 16 foul shots.
Chico State, meanwhile, shot 53 percent overall and 12-of-27 from 3-point range. The Wildcats also pulled down 15 offensive rebounds, led by Barton's five.
The Wildcats' easy win allows them to enter Saturday's showdown well rested as no one played more than 26 minutes and none of the starters more than 25.
Seattle Pacific 101, San Francisco State 96
BOX SCORE Seattle Pacific's Patrick Simon set a new Seattle Pacific standard with 11 3-pointers en route to a career-high 33 points to lead the 9th-ranked Falcons to a 101-96 win against San Francisco State.
The Gators got their own peak performance as Nefi Perdomo poured in a career-high 28 points, but San Francisco State (1-1) could not overcome Seattle Pacific's prolific 3-point shooting.
The Falcons hit on 19 of 24 attempts from beyond the arc. Simon was 10-of-12 (He made his first seven.) and David Downs sank 4-of-6 on the way to 21 points. Mitch Penner scored 22 points off the bench for Seattle Pacific, which improved to 7-1.
The game marked the return of Pleasant Valley High School product Bren Haley to Chico. The San Francisco State junior played seven minutes and provided two assists and a rebound.
