ROHNERT PARK, Calif. – The Chico State men's basketball team played perhaps the longest final minute in a game this season Saturday as Sonoma State made every effort to rally from a nine-point deficit.
 
Sonoma State intentionally gave Chico State nine free throw opportunities in the final minute and the Wildcats made eight of them as those were just enough to hold off the reeling Seawolves 96-90 in the Wolves' Den to run its win streak to an unprecedented 13 games. It is the longest win streak in the modern era of Chico State men's basketball history.
 
The 2024-25 Wildcat team continues to rewrite the program's record book as the 10-0 start to the conference schedule is the best in program history. This includes the days in the defunct Northern California Athletic Conference from 1982-98 and joining the CCAA from 1998 to today.
 
The win sets up a first-place showdown with Cal State Dominguez Hills, which also avoided a scare by holding off San Francisco State's rally 79-75 in Carson this afternoon to also remain 10-0 in the CCAA. The Wildcats and Toros meet in Acker Gym Thursday at 7:30 p.m. to determine who takes sole possession of first place to end of the first half of the CCAA schedule. Both of them are sitting comfortably four games ahead of third-place Cal State San Bernardino, despite the Coyotes picking up a win over Cal State Monterey Bay at Coussoulis Arena.
 
While shooting a season-high 63.3 percent (38-for-60) from the field, all the starters led the effort in the scoring front for Chico State. Miles Daniels had 10 points but came up clutch in the final minute of the game, making four of those eight free throws to keep the Wildcats in front of the Seawolves. Isaiah Kerr and Jojo Murphy each contributed two free throws during that pressured moment.
 
Kerr had 22 points on the afternoon, including 15 in the second half. He came up two short from his career high. Trae Taylor was another big second-half performer, scoring 15 of his 20 points in the latter period. He also had 11 of Chico State's 38 rebounds to complete his second double-double of the season. Caden Harris had 18 points and Murphy had 15 to round out the starting group. Off the bench, Ned Joyce scored six points and Cortevious Taylor had five.
 
Sonoma State (8-7, 4-5 CCAA), which finished the game shooting 47.3 percent (35-for-74), was led by Chris Holley, who had 18 points along with eight assists.
 
Although Chico State started off with a 7-0 lead two minutes into the game, Sonoma State responded by outscoring the Wildcats 13-6 to tie the game at 13 with 13:24 left in the opening half. The Seawolves had led for nearly five minutes in the game. They had a 34-33 lead until an and-1 play by Murphy at the 3:11 mark leaped the Wildcats over the Seawolves in what eventually became permanent. Chico State went into the locker room with a 43-40 lead.
 
Both teams would trade baskets to start the second half. The Wildcats would further distance themselves thanks to Cortevious Taylor scoring five points during a 7-0 run to take a 69-54 lead, the largest gap in the game.
 
From that point on, Sonoma State would outscore Chico State 26-19 leading up to the final minute.