Box Score SAN BERNARDINO – Three times the 19th-ranked Cal State San Bernardino men's basketball team exhaled. Three times No. 21 Chico State made the Coyotes hold their breath again. The fourth exhale came at the final buzzer when time ran out on the Wildcats in an 84-81 loss.
Preseason California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) favorite Cal State San Bernardino led 52-41 early in the second half before the Wildcats pulled to within one at 55-54.
The Coyotes led 70-57 with 7:19 remaining before the Wildcats scratched back to within 77-76.
When Cal State San Bernardino made five straight free throws to build the lead to 82-76 with 1:33 left it had to feel the game was finally in the bag. But the Wildcats made one last push, pulling to within 83-81 with 23 seconds to go before missing a potential game-tying 3-pointer on their final possession.
Cal State San Bernardino improved to 8-1 overall and 5-0 in the CCAA with its eighth straight win that also snapped a five-game losing streak to Chico State.
The Wildcats fell to 7-2 overall and 3-2 in the CCAA despite Jordan Semple's career-high 26 points, 18 of which came in the second half. Semple also pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds.
Rashad Parker finished with 18 points for the Wildcats, Sean Park scored 15, and Amir Carraway had 13 points, six boards and two blocked shots.
Chico State built a 35-30 first-half lead behind Parker's 11 early points, but the Coyotes finished the period with an 8-2 push that gave them the lead for good.
Cal State San Bernardino opened the second stanza with a 14-4 run before Semple exploded for 11 points (two three-point plays, a layup and a three) in just over three minutes to close the gap to 55-54.
A 15-3 Cal State San Bernardino surge followed before Park, Parker and Semple scored five points each during a 19-7 run aided by Coyotes' Head Coach Jeff Oliver's technical foul and the Wildcats trailed just 77-76 with 2:29 to play.
But Chico State sent Cal State San Bernardino to the line on its next three possessions and the Coyotes opened an 82-76 advantage with five straight makes.
After Carraway's 3-point play cut the lead in half, Park misfired on a 3-pointer and Carraway did the same on the attempted putback.
After the Coyotes were fouled and made 1-of-2 from the line, Semple snaked into the lane for a layup with 23 seconds left. The Coyotes again left the door open by making only 1-of-2 free throws with 13 ticks remaining, but Giordano Estrada missed the mark on a long 3-pointer with seven seconds left and the Coyotes secured the rebound to win.
Chico State is back in action Saturday night at UC San Diego (5-4 overall, 1-4 CCAA). Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
