BURNABY, British Columbia – For the first time in the longtime history of the Cal State Dominguez Hills men's basketball program, the Toros opened their season outside the United States. In their debut north of the border in Canada, the Toros held off host Simon Fraser 66-63 Friday.
All Toros found the bucket at some point during the game.
Cameron Barry led the effort in his Toro debut, dropping in 17 points to be the only one in double figures.
Jordan Hilstock was second most with nine and
David Cheatom had eight. Altogether, the Toros shot 39 percent from the field, including 8-for-18 from 3-point range.
The Red Leafs, meanwhile, had a better performance in the second half. After shooting 11-for-30 in the opening period, SFU performed better in the second, going 14-for-27 to finish the night shooting 44 percent. Georges Lefebvre and Jimmy Zaborniak each had 17 points to lead the Red Leafs.
Statistically, the Toros had the edge on free throws made, making 14 comparing to the Red Leafs' seven. Dominguez Hills also capitalized eight more points off turnovers than Simon Fraser.
After a tight battle to start the game, the Toros took full advantage of the free throw line. Hilstock made four and
Isaiah Morris had the final two to give Dominguez Hills a 39-27 lead into halftime.
Although the Toros had an 18-point lead with 16:24 left in the game, their largest gap, the Red Leafs practically erased that deficit by tying the contest at 60 with 1:25 left.
Damien Miller broke the tie with a jumper with 46 seconds left and got two critical free throws that eventually became the difference in the game. Cheatom had two free throws with six seconds left that provided insurance.
The Toros will finish off their season-opening trip in Canada taking on Western Washington on the Simon Fraser campus Saturday at 5:15 p.m.
