You never know who is going to take the big shot when the Chico State men's basketball team needs a bucket. Neither does the opposition. That has been the key to the Wildcats' offense all season, and it was once again in a 79-73 win against Cal State San Marcos Saturday night at Acker Gym.
 
Malik Duffy, Isaiah Brooks, and Justin Briggs scored 14 points apiece, Kevin Warren chipped in 12, Colby Orr came off the bench to tally nine, and Calvin Geraci scored eight as the Wildcats improved to 17-5 this season, including 12-4 in California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) play.
 
Duffy also grabbed a career-high 12 rebounds, Brooks dished out five assists, and Briggs blocked two more shots, adding to his Chico State career record.
 
Cal State San Marcos slipped to 11-12 overall and 7-10 in the CCAA.
 
When the Wildcats fell behind early on it was Orr who came to the rescue, knocking down a pair of 3-pointers and scoring on a drive to spark a 16-4 run to end the first half, giving Chico State the lead for keeps.
 
Geraci buried go-ahead 3-pointers twice during that run.
 
With the lead whittled down to one early in the second stanza, Brooks scored on a drive and then buried a triple to spark an 8-0 push.
 
With the lead back down to six with 13 minutes remaining, Joshua Hamilton found Briggs running the floor for a ferocious dunk (pictured above) that lit up the crowd of 1,025. Amari Stroud kept them buzzing with a nice three-point play that stretched the lead to double-figures for the first time all night.
 
When the Wildcats went cold, failing to score for nearly seven minutes, it was Duffy who ended the drought, draining a crucial 3-pointer to push the lead back to eight.
 
And with the game on the line, Warren scored six points in the final 3:26 to clinch the victory.
 
All three of Chico State's starters—Duffy, Warren, Briggs, Brooks and Geraci—are averaging between 11.0 and 13.2 points per game while shooting a combined 52 percent from the field and 44 percent from 3-point range.
 
The Wildcats will be back in action next week with two huge road games that could determine second place in the CCAA standings. They'll take their 12-4 conference record to Cal Poly Pomona (13-4) Thursday night before trekking to Cal State San Bernardino (14-3) Saturday. Both games are scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m. and will be broadcast locally on FM 93.9 KPAY.