SAN MARCOS—Up 38-23 against a struggling Cal State San Marcos squad with two minutes left in the first half, it looked as though the Chico State men's basketball team was ready to run away and hide. Instead, it was the Wildcats' momentum that disappeared.
 
Cal State San Marcos outscored Chico State 39-12 over the next 20 minutes and held off a late Wildcats' rally to win 67-61 Saturday afternoon at the The Sports Center in San Marcos.
 
The Wildcats hit 11 of their first 21 shots, including seven of 11 from 3-point range, to race to a 29-13 advantage. The offense cooled considerably at that point, but Chico State still led 38-23 after a Spencer LaShells triple with 2:03 remaining in the first half.
 
But the Wildcats missed 22 of their next 26 shots and committed nine turnovers over the next 20 minutes as the Cougars wrestled away control, eventually taking a 62-50 lead with 2:09 to play.
 
Malik Duffy hit consecutive 3-pointers and Nate Ambrosini made another to trim the lead to 63-59 with 34 seconds remaining. But the Wildcats misfired on their next three shots and Cal State San Marcos sank four straight free throws over the final 30 seconds to seal the win.
 
The Wildcats fell to 4-5 overall and 3-5 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. Cal State San Marcos snapped a nine-game losing skid to improve to 4-11 overall and 1-8 in the CCAA.
 
Chico State finished 15-of-43 from 3-point range, setting a new school record for 3-point attempts.
 
Ambrosini was 5-of-13 from beyond the arc and finished with a team-high 15 points. Duffy was 4-of-7 from 3-point range and finished with 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
 
The Wildcats, who have played five straight and seven of their nine games away from home, finished this five-game road swing 2-3. They'll play seven of the next 10 at home beginning Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. versus Cal State Dominguez Hills. Mike Baca will be courtside to provide the play-by-play, broadcast locally on Newstalk 1290-AM and 102.9 FM KPAY and simulcast on the Internet via www.chicowildcats.com. Live stats and live streaming video will also be available online.