CHANDLER, Ariz. – The University of California, Merced men's basketball team fell 67-55 to Benedictine Mesa on Thursday night in game one of a two-game Arizona road trip.
Cameron Brown led the Bobcats (7-5, 5-2) efforts with 13 points, nine rebounds, and two steals.
Chris Bramah finished with ten points on 50% (3-6) shooting from three-point land. Bramah also had three assists and a career-high three steals.
Jaron Mertle hauled in a season-high 13 rebounds to go along with six points and two blocks.
Other notables include nine points from Jayson Wiltz, five rebounds from DeDrick Martin, and two field goals each from Tiler Fears and Jaden Lebel.
Both defenses were stout to start the night as the two teams held each other to just two made field goals in the first seven minutes. Brown and Brandon Harmon made up the two baskets for the Bobcats and they led it 5-4 after that stretch.
Shots started to fall but UC Merced trailed 14-12 midway through the first half and 21-16 a few minutes later. Fears scored for the Bobcats to make it a one-possession game with 6:20 to play, but then BenU followed with a 9-0 run to end the half and held a 30-18 lead at intermission.
BenU picked up right where they left off in the second half and a 10-2 run put them up by 20 points at 40-20 less than four minutes in. Head coach Kevin Pham's team tried to get back in it with a three-point play from Aidan Sevilla and a triple by Chris Bramah, but the Bobcats couldn't get any closer than 13 points.
UC Merced still had a fighting chance trailing 58-44 with five minutes left, but then a 5-0 BenU run put the Bobcats behind by 19 points. UC Merced countered with a 7-0 run of their own on their next three possessions, including scoring four points off turnovers to make it 63-51 with two and a half minutes left, and also pulled within ten points, before falling.
The Bobcats finished the night shooting 37.3% from the field, 23.5% from downtown, and 50% from the foul line. BenU made nine of 21 triples.
Looking ahead, the Bobcats will play at Park University Gilbert on Saturday, January 13. Tipoff from the Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa, Ariz., is scheduled for 6:30pm PST.
