OAKLAND, Calif. - The University of California, Merced men's basketball team fell 75-58 to Fresno Pacific University in the first game of the Holy Names Classic on Friday afternoon inside Tobin Gymnasium.

The Bobcats (2-2) are currently competing in their first of two multi-team events in November and the first contest put head coach Kevin Pham's team up against Fresno Pacific University for the first time since 2014.

A shorthanded Bobcats team saw three players finish in double figures, including Caleb Gilbert who led the team in scoring for the first time in career with 12 points. The freshman has scored in double figures in back-to-back games off the bench. Gilbert also grabbed five rebounds which shared team-high with Onkar Sidhu and Jaron Mertle. Sidhu and Mertle have five or more rebounds in three straight games. 

Josiah Ajiake pitched in a career-high eleven points in part due to an 85% (6-7) success rate at the charity stripe. Mason Westlake had ten points to go along with a team-high and season-high three assists.

Sidhu and Zach Phipps added seven and six points, respectively.

Georgie Nze had four points and led the Bobcats defensively with three steals in just 14 minutes of action.

Fresno Pacific was led by Nate Kendricks' 14 points, three assists and three steals in the wire-to-wire win.

Just over five minutes into the game, Fresno Pacific took off on a 10-run to grab a double figure lead at 18-7. A triple each from Phipps and Westlake cut the deficit in half with eight minutes to go in the half, but Fresno Pacific answered with back-to-back three-pointers of their own to regrab the double figure lead. 

The two teams exchanged runs the rest of the frame but it was Fresno Pacific who held a 36-24 lead at intermission. The 12-point deficit was the Bobcats largest halftime deficit of the season.

The Bobcats trailed 51-34 early in the second half. The deficit was primarily between 14 and 19 points the rest of the way with an occasional 20-point lead for Fresno Pacific. 

Gilbert led a final charge that brought the Bobcats within 12, 66-54 with just four minutes to play.

However, Fresno Pacific responded with nine straight points to hold a game-high 21-point lead in the final two minutes.

Fresno Pacific shot 49% (28-57) from the floor. UC Merced was 35% (20-57) from the field, 24% (7-29) from downtown and 65% (11-17) from the foul line.

UC Merced forced 15 FPU turnovers and have forced at least 13 in all four games this year. 

A quick turnaround for UC Merced as they take on Holy Names University for the first time since 2012 on Saturday, November 20 at 2:00pm.