Stepping up its level of competition, the University of La Verne hung tough with the University of San Diego in the first 20 minutes of action before the Toreros controlled the second half en route to an 82-57 verdict Monday night in men's basketball action at the Jenny Craig Pavilion in San Diego.
The Torero offense picked up in the second half by shooting 59.3% (16-27) including a white-hot 7-8 effort (87.5%) from three-point range. Moreover, USD connected on 14 of 16 free throw attempts after intermission.
Though the Leos never led during the contest, they did make life interesting for their West Coast Conference opponent after spotting the first nine points of the game. Down 9-0 at the 15:33 mark, the Leopards got on the board on an Austin Napolitano field goal at the 14:15 mark, propelling a 14-6 run.
La Verne (3-4) would get to within a point on a three-point basket from Trevor Woodland to close the margin to 15-14 with 8:09 remaining in the first half. After USD extended its lead to eight at 26-18, the Leos scored four straight points to cut the lead to 26-22 with 1:10 remaining. San Diego's Darien Norris responded with a three-pointer to send the Toreros up by seven at the break.
San Diego (2-8) opened the second stanza on a 12-3 run in the first 4:39 of the second half to grab a 41-25 cushion. After a Tyler Hoyt free throw pulled La Verne to within 13 points at 44-31, the Toreros proceeded to reel off 14 straight to lead comfortably at 58-31 with 11:10 remaining.
For the game, USD shot 47.3% from the field compared to 42.6% for La Verne, but the home team enjoyed a bigger advantage at the free throw line by making 21 of 26 attempts (80.8%). La Verne hit 13 of 23 attempts from the charity stripe (56.5%). The Toreros held a 35-31 edge in rebounding.
The Toreros had five players reach double figures in scoring led by the trio of Norris, Chris Gabriel and Ken Rancifer who each tallied 14 points. Woodland paced La Verne with a game-high 16 points.
The Leopards return home to face Oglethorpe on Sunday at Frantz Athletic Court in the first of a five-game homestand. Tip-off for Sunday's game is 2:00 pm.
