BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Some teams are just a thorn in your side. It doesn't matter what year, what season, or even where you play.

The Seattle Pacific Falcons are one of those teams for the Concordia University Irvine men's basketball team. 

SPU started the season ranked No. 21 in the nation and the Eagles were eager to face a Top 25 squad on a neutral court as part of the Chuck Randall Classic hosted by Western Washington.

The good news was CUI shot a solid 50 percent from the floor against a talented, veteran team.

Wayne Arnold led all scorers with 25 points while Joshua Caston poured in 24 points. That dynamic duo made the All-Tournament Team this weekend.

Plus, senior Kayle Knuckles notched a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

The bad news? SPU actually shot the ball even better at a 63 percent clip.

"We came up here to see where we are at in terms of if we are ready to win tough road games in conference," explained CUI head coach Ken Ammann, the recent recipient of the Harry Statham Award presented by Small College Basketball (SCB). "Defensively, we are not. We have to fix that before conference starts in a little over a week."

The two teams went back-and-forth for most of the first half until SPU built some space and a 12-point lead at the break. The Green and Gold trailed by as many as 15 early in the second half, but put together an 11-0 run to get themselves back in the game.

Christian Butler provided a spark when he banked in a trey to cut the deficit to 66-54 midway through the second half. After a timeout, Knuckles converted on a put-back and then Arnold drained a turn-around baseline jumper to trim the lead to just eight. 
Seconds later, CUI forced a turnover and Knuckles drove into the lane for a twisting layup, which prompted SPU to call time. The next basket came from Cameron Fini, who worked a beautiful give-and-go with Caston to pull CUI within 66-62. Fini finished with a season-high eight points to help the cause.

The Falcons finally solved the equation the new few possessions, making just enough shots and free throws to hang on for a 90-80 victory.  SPU shot a health 22-for-28 at the charity stripe.

Meanwhile, CUI shot just 25 percent (8-for-25) from downtown after cashing in on many three-point attempts their first handful of games this season.

Concordia returns home for its next game, which be the day after Thanksgiving.  The Eagles host Bethesda on Friday, Nov. 26 at 3 p.m. inside CU Arena.

**Admission is free for this game as Concordia will not be selling tickets over Thanksgiving break.**

Concordia will open up PacWest Conference action with a road trip through Hawai'i as the calendar turns from November to December after Thanksgiving.

CLICK HERE for the full CUI men's basketball schedule