FULLERTON, Calif. – Cal State Fullerton dropped its fifth straight game, falling 83-73 to Omaha in a non-conference tilt Wednesday night at Titan Gym.
The Titans (2-5) committed 17 turnovers on the night, 12 of them in the first half that resulted 10 points off turnovers for the Mavericks (3-4) in the first 20 minutes and put Fullerton in a double-digit hole at halftime.
"I think we just lost focus and did not take care of the basketball as well as we need to win basketball games and right now that's a glaring deficiency we're playing with in terms of turning the ball over too much," said Titans head coach Dedrique Taylor.
Tre' Coggins led the Titans (2-5) in scoring for the fifth time in seven games this season, dropping 18 points on 6-for-16 shooting. Jackson Rowe added 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds while Dwight Ramos poured in 12 points on 4-for-6 shooting in 11 minutes off the bench.
Forward Arkim Robertson drew his first start of the season on Wednesday and scored a career high nine points on Wednesday night in 18 minutes on the floor. He also added one steal.
"He's bringing some energy; he's bringing that presence in front of the rim in terms of shot blocking," Taylor said. "I just think his length, his athleticism and his energy and activity is something that we need to try to get us off to a good start."
For Omaha, Tra-Deon Hollins led the way with 20 points on 5-for-10 shooting and 2-for-4 from beyond the arc while Tre'Shawn Thurman added 17 points and 12 rebounds on the night.
Fullerton trailed by 14 points going into the half and trailed by 17 early in the second half before putting together a 14-0 run to cut the Mavericks lead to three points. Coggins helped spur the rally, scoring nine of his points during the run in a 2:08 span, hitting both of his shots from 3-point range and sinking three free throws.
The Mavericks responded with six straight points to put the lead back up to nine points before Fullerton scored five straight to trim the lead back down to four. But the Mavericks put the game away by outscoring the Titans 20-9 to build a 15-point cushion and never looked back.
The free throw line proved to be pivotal in the contest as Fullerton missed 13 free throws and shot 45.8 percent from the charity stripe while the Mavericks were 25-for-27 at the line including 21-for-23 in the second half.
The Titans host Pacific on Saturday night at Titan Gym, looking to snap their five game losing streak.
Notes: Wednesday was the third time this season Fullerton had three players score in double figures in a game and the first time the Titans came out on the losing end of a game when that happens… Fullerton's bench outscored the Mavericks bench, 24-20, on Wednesday night… The Titans scored 32 points in the paint against Omaha, marking the sixth time in seven games the team has scored 30-plus in the paint… Guard Austen Awosika scored nine points in 23 minutes off the bench, his second highest point total in a game this season. He also added a team-high three steals, tying his career high.