The University of La Verne ended its Oregon road trip with its first loss of the season as it dropped a 66-58 decision to Pacific University in men's basketball action Saturday evening at the Stoller Center in Forest Grove, Oregon.
The hot-shooting Boxers connected on 27 of their 39 field goal attempts (69.2%), including a 5-9 effort from three-point range.
La Verne jumped out to a 15-9 lead at the 14:30 mark on a jumper by Alonzo Young, but the Boxers rallied behind seven straight points from Charles Mosley to draw even at 16-16 midway through the period.
The game remained close for the next four minutes until Daniel Zitani's short-range jumper with 6:44 left sparked a 10-1 Pacific run that closed the half. Mosley contributed four points in the rally, including the last bucket of the half with 38 seconds left that gave the Boxers a 29-22 halftime edge.
The Boxers used a 10-0 run early in the second half, culminating on a Mosley bucket, to grab a 39-27 lead at the 15:10 mark. Another 9-1 run gave Pacific their biggest lead of the game, 50-33, with 9:50 left.
La Verne forced 10 Pacific turnovers in the final 10 minutes. A pair of Jake Veith free throws on opened a 13-3 run that brought the Leopards with three, 61-58 with 1:16 left. A Collin Wester three-pointer on Boxers' next possession would turn back the comeback effort from the Leopards.
Pacific won the battle of the boards as it outrebounded the Leopards 31-24. The Leopards' pressure defense forced 28 Pacific turnovers on the night. La Verne shot 37% (20-54) from the field and made 60% (12-20) of its free throw attempts.
Mosley totaled 21 points and eight rebounds while Daniel Zitani posted 15 points to pace the Boxers. Collin Wester added 14 points and seven rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Young led La Verne with 15 points. Jourdan Simmonds added 14 points while Alex Wolpe led the Leopards with four rebounds.
La Verne returns to action on November 28 as it opens Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play at Whittier.
