With 17:09 remaining in the second half, the Cowboys had taken their largest lead of the night at 50-31. With a 9-0 run to cap off the first half that garnered them a 10 point halftime lead–then an 11-2 run to open the second half gave the Cowboys a clear advantage early in the second half in their final non-conference tilt of the season on the road at Cal-State Fullerton. It looked like the Cowboys were on cruise-control to their seventh win of the season–and that may have ultimately been their near downfall in what turned out to be a sweat-inducing 73-69 final score in favor of the Pokes.
After taking their game-high 19 point lead, the Cowboys went completely cold after the Titans had shifted their defense to a zone look. The Cowboys made four out of their first five attempts from deep to open the second half, then preceded to miss their next nine attempts from deep–until Dontaie Allen, who entered the game for the first time within the final six minutes of the contest, knocked down the Cowboys’ first three in 10 tries to help hold off the Titans late at Titan Gym in Fullerton, California.
While the Cowboys certainly looked to be playing not to lose late in this one, rather than playing to win, it’s still an assuring–yet shakingly so–sign that the Cowboys were able to close this one at the free throw line late in a hostile road environment. While a late foul by Kobe Newton–with seven seconds remaining and a four point lead–further hampered the Cowboys’ closing this one out and further added to the list of questionable late game plays by the Cowboys, they still got the job done on the road.
The Cowboys’ offense impressed yet again from a statistical standpoint, as they finished 51% from the field after shooting a season-high best 75.9% from the field in their last outing against Bellarmine. However, after starting the contest 9/13 (69%) from deep–which probably played into the Pokes’ trigger-happy nature in the second half–the Cowboys ended the contest only 10/26 (38.5%) from deep, making only one three in their final 13 attempts from deep.
Still, the Cowboys were able to fight through those shooting woes to end their non-conference slate with a win, as the Cowboys will carry with them a 7-5 record into Mountain West conference play.
Newton led the Cowboys with a career high in the Brown and Gold, finishing his night with 20 points including five made threes. Obi Agbim finished with 16 points and was paced by Touko Tainamo with 13 and Jordan Nesbitt with 11 to cap the Cowboys in double figures.
The Cowboys will begin their conference slate by playing host to Nevada and Boise State on December 28 and 31, respectively. Nevada will enter the contest on December 28 with an 0-1 record in conference play after being edged out by Colorado State on the road in their opening conference matchup. The Cowboys will also enter with an 0-1 record after a close road loss to Utah State earlier this month.
