SEASIDE, Calif. – The University of California, Merced men's basketball team fell 69-62 to NCAA Division II foe Cal State Monterey Bay on Thursday night at the Kelp Bed in the first ever meeting between the two programs.
Cameron Brown led the Bobcats (6-5) with 16 points, four rebounds, and two steals. One game removed from breaking the program's single-game scoring record, Brown made more strides in the program record books in the final game of the calendar year. He passed Jonah Cottrell for ninth in program history with 741 career points and he passed Cottrell and George Idehen for eighth all-time with 79 career steals. Also of note, Brown went 6-6 at the foul line on Thursday.
Aidan Sevilla tallied career-high's with 13 points and four steals. He also pitched in three assists.
Pawllos Habtom scored 11 points on 75% (3-4) shooting from downtown. His three triples more than doubled his three-point output entering the night. Myles Haynes and Tiler Fears finished with seven and six points, respectively.
Jaron Mertle grabbed four rebounds to move ahead of George Idehen for third in program history with 572 career rebounds. He also blocked a shot, putting him in a tie with Ronnie Kozak for fourth all-time with 49 career blocks.
Austin Dewes recorded a career-high four blocks, becoming just the fifth ever Bobcat to reach that mark in a game.
UC Merced finished the night shooting 45% from the field, 40% from downtown, and 71% from the charity stripe. However, CSUMB slashed .500/.611/.800 to outlast the Bobcats.
The Bobcats trailed 63-60 inside of a minute before falling 69-62.
Earlier in the game, there were eleven first half lead changes and no team led by more than four points in the opening act.
The Bobcats biggest first half lead was two points, 2-0 to start the game and then 23-21 with six minutes to play after a 5-0 spurt highlighted by a Habtom three-pointer. Habtom also gave the Bobcats a 29-28 lead with 1:41 left before CSUMB scored five unanswered points to end the half, including a buzzer-beating field goal to go up 32-29 at intermission.
UC Merced pulled even 33-33 one minute into the second half, but never jumped back in front the rest of the night. CSUMB broke the tie with a three-pointer and then slowly added to its advantage, extending its lead to a game-high eleven points at 52-41 with 12 minutes remaining.
Sevilla and Habtom connected on back-to-back triples for the Bobcats to cut the deficit in half, but CSUMB countered with another three-pointer on its next possession. A 7-0 UC Merced run capped by a Haynes three-point play followed over approximately the next five minutes to make it 55-54.
The Otters then broke their nearly five-minute scoring drought with a three-pointer and shortly after held a 63-56 lead inside of two and half minutes. The Bobcats continued to battle and had a chance to tie the game in the closing 90 seconds trailing 63-60 with the basketball, but the Otters forced a turnover and turned it into a bucket at the other end to help inch closer to victory. CSUMB sealed the game with a dunk and a pair of foul shots in the closing seconds.
Despite the loss, the Bobcats committed a season-low nine turnovers. It was the first time committing single digit turnovers since February 17, 2024.
Thursday's game marked the Bobcats last of five games against NCAA Division II opponents this season. UC Merced went 3-2 in such games, including beating future conference opponent Stanislaus State.
Up next, UC Merced will take a break for final exams and the NCAA Division II Winter Break before returning to action against Lincoln University on Thursday, January 2. Tipoff from Chabot College in Hayward, Calif., is scheduled for 7:00pm.
