IRVINE, Calif. – The CUI men's basketball team won Monday night's PacWest matchup against Dominican by a score of 70-60. The Eagles improve to 6-5 on the season, while moving into fifth place in the PacWest standings with a 3-2 conference record.
Senior
Matthew Weyand kick-started the offense, making four beyond the arc for 12 points in the first half. Weyand would go on to finish the game with 15 points, two rebounds, a block, and an assist.
"We know (Matt) can shoot the ball and we needed it," said CUI head coach Ken Ammann. "He's had some games where he's made a few, but we needed someone to get hot and he kept us in it in the first half and that was big."
Wayne Arnold and
Kobe Sanders also contributed double-digit performances in the win, scoring 11 and 12 points respectively. Arnold led the team with five steals in the game while Sanders led with five assists.
Sanders highlighted the Eagles' impressive ball movement to create many scoring opportunities throughout the game, as reflected in his team-leading five assists.
With a strong defensive performance and efficient passing, the Eagles were able to outscore the Penguins 43-30 in the second half to make up the deficit and walk away with the win.
"I was proud of how we competed and earned a big win," said Ammann on the team's performance. "We didn't make a lot of shots early on and I was really proud we didn't let that affect us in the second half. It's hard to win when you don't see the ball go in a lot and I thought our guys did a great job of winning the game on the defensive end because Dominican was tough."
The Green & Gold shot 93 percent (14-for-15) from the charity stripe, with both
Kayle Knuckles and
Joshua Caston shooting a perfect 4-for-4 in the game. Other notable performances include
Cameron Fini, who collected nine rebounds in the game, and
Cristian Butler, who made his first career start as a true freshman.
The Eagles play their final game of the calendar year on Thursday, Dec. 30 at 7:30 PM, at Biola. Their next home game will be on Saturday, Jan.1 at 4:30 PM, against Point Loma.
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