COSTA MESA -- Men's basketball (1-1) closed the PacWest/CCAA Crossover Tournament with its first loss of the season, as they dropped a 68-57 result against #12 Cal State Dominguez Hills (1-1). VU never led over the 40 minutes, but most looked most convincing midway through the second half, as the Blue and Gold cranked out an 8-0 run to tie the game 45-45. The 2025 NCAA Runners-up took a much-needed timeout however and reasserted control to keep the Lions at bay Saturday evening at the Freed Center.

VU gained ground from their second unit and also matched the Toros in points in the paint (38-32 CSUDH), points off turnovers (19-14 VU), and bench points (19-9 VU).

Their biggest crutch was offensive rhythm. VU had just 23 points in the first half, their lowest since Feb. 2024. They also had shooting splits of 35.9% (23-64) from the field, 13.8% (4-29) from three, and 41.2% (7-17) from the charity stripe.

In terms of individual performers, VU's dynamic duo from opening night each had double-figures in the loss, as Erik Howlin had the team-high 16 points on 7-12 shooting and Bryson Metz netted13 points on 6-12 from the field.

Tony Colley was next up for the Lions with eight points and two boards. Dylan Swillis and Devin Carson made their debut in the second unit as Swillis earned seven points and Carson claimed five.

Aibigho Ujadughele had four points, three steals, and a team-high seven rebounds.

The Toros were led by transfers Josiah Sanders, who tied a career-high 24 points (11-16 FG), and DaSean Stevens, who had 15 points.

What Happened? CSUDH was out to an 11-0 start, halting the roars of a rowdy home crowd inside the Freed Center. The Toros ran a small ball lineup, with Sanders the outlier and outlet to get going in isolation, as the forward filed seven of the first 11 points.

VU called a timeout but also received an administrative technical foul, which led to an overall delay in the game's next restart. Exiting the extended media timeout, VU made a full lineup switch and, from that moment onward, made the game a scrappy dogfight.

Ujadughele brought the defensive intensity in his first minutes, and Swillis and Carson combined for the first VU points of the contest, as Carson hit a trey from the corner to make it 11-3 CSUDH.

It broke a 0-6 field goal start and a near five-minute VU scoring drought to tip off the game.

Vanguard missed their next seven shots before Howlin got to work with a midrange jumper. He assisted two possessions later to Swillis on a knockdown three-pointer (13-8 CSUDH).

The Toros attacked the paint to shoot out on a 10-0 run, and a Stevens layup on the break pushed the Toros to what stood as their largest lead (15) of the game at 23-8.

The Lions tried to stick around in the final five minutes of the half, as Metz scored two straight field goals to try and place the home team into a groove. Sanders had a throwdown slam to grant the Toros back some control, but Howlin and Metz would combine for nine of the final 11 VU points to keep the deficit at single digits heading into the half (31-23 CSUDH).

The Blue and Gold improved their overall field goal percentage to 41% for the second half, but could not get it going from beyond the arc, as they shot 7% (1-14). CSUDH shot 58% (15-26) and 44% (4-9) from three-point range.

Colley had a layup to get the Lions on their way, and Kailen Rains split a pair of free throws for a 33-26 scoreline. The next phase of play was an 8-7 Lion margin as they attacked the paint for four straight field goals. Their lone three-pointer of the half came from Carson Frawley from the right corner to make it 42-37. Sanders shot back with a three-pointer from the opposite right wing for Dominguez.

The Lions made their best run at the 12:33 mark as Howlin and Ujadughele forced three straight Toro turnovers. The Blue and Gold built momentum on an 8-0 with a Ujadughele three-point play opportunity finished at the free throw line, as the Lions earned their first tie at 45-45 with 9:37 left to go.

The Toros took a timeout and then slowly reseized control. Despite Sanders heading to the bench with eight minutes left, VU couldn't quite capitalize on his absence to punish a smaller CSUDH lineup. They hit just one field goal in Sanders's four-minute rest period as the Toros stayed composed to forge a 14-3 run to lead 59-48.

VU were forced to play catch-up and try to force turnovers in their press for the final four minutes. Stevens kept the Toros steady, scoring or assisting on four of their last nine points, which included a pair of dimes to successive Sanders slams to seal the Lion defeat.

What Was Said? "We really struggled to find a rhythm tonight," noted Head Coach Rhett Soliday.  "Dominguez was long, physical, and athletic, and they made it really difficult on us in multiple facets of the game. They are the West Region champs for a reason and remain so until somebody new takes that title. I thought Josiah Sanders and DeSean Stevens for them were really hard to handle, and they made key plays when they needed them. Offensively, for us to go 4/29 from 3 and 7/17 at the line and still have a chance down the stretch shows the type of resolve our guys have. We made a great run at them in the second half, but credit to Dominguez for answering after their timeout in a big way. We are building and a work in progress. Our guys have the toughness and character to figure it out, and so I know we will."

What's Next? Men's basketball welcomes Stanton on Tuesday, November 18, at 7:30 pm.