Playing its second consecutive road contest against a Division I opponent, the University of La Verne men's basketball squad dropped a 69-49 verdict at Cal State Bakersfield Saturday evening at the Icardo Center in Bakersfield.

Two nights after its game against UNLV, La Verne hung tough against the Roadrunners through much of the first half.  Despite falling behind 9-0, the Leopards recovered to battle to within three points, as Jourdan Simmonds hit a three-pointers to cap a 7-0 run to trail 15-12 with 8:50 left in the first half.

The Leopards remained competitive after CSUB opened a 23-13 lead, closing the gap to 25-20 at 2:38 on the clock.

Cal State Bakersfield (4-6) ended the half on a 10-0 spurt to take a 35-20 advantage at intermission.

A layup from Vince Bauer in the opening minute of the second half closed the deficit to 35-22, but the Roadrunners went on a 10-1 spurt to open a 22-point advantage at 45-23 at the 16:44 mark.  CSUB led by as many as 24 points en route to a 20-point victory.

Stephon Carter went a perfect 12-12 from the free throw line to lead all scorers with 26 points, while Brandon Barnes and Tyrone White added 12 and 10 points, respectively, for the Roadrunners.

Jake Vieth paced the Leopards with 12 points with Bauer adding 11 points.

La Verne (1-6) returns home to host Puget Sound on Tuesday in a 2:00 pm tip-off at Frantz Athletic Court.