SEATTLE – In a game that was closer than the final score indicated, USD men's basketball fell 75-64 on the road to Seattle U Thursday night.
 
San Diego trailed by as much as 15 in the first half in its first matchup with Seattle U in 46 years but battled all the back to lead inside 12 minutes remaining. The Torero comeback was thwarted by a Redhawk push late in the game, however, as the hosts separated again.
 
USD finished on the plus side of rebounds against one of the WCC's bigger teams, but had a down day shooting the rock, going 38.3% from the field and 29.2% from beyond the arc on the night.
 
The Toreros were led again by junior guard Ty-Laur Johnson, who entered the game third in WCC play in scoring. He posted another 18 points to go with nine assists, his third straight game with seven-plus assists, just one shy of his second 10-assist double-double in the last three games. Torero bigs had a solid night, as junior Assane Diop and redshirt-freshman Gavin Ripp scored Torero bests.
 
How it Happened

• It was a slow start to the game, but Seattle U was the first to pick up its shooting
• The Redhawks launched a 15-2 run to get out to a big lead
• Johnson came alive to slowly chip away at the deficit, whittling it down to nine points at halftime, the score reading 33-24
• The Toreros came out of the break with energy on both sides of the ball
• Finally, USD took the lead at 47-46 at the 11:30 mark in the second period
• Seattle U would go on a late 9-0 run however, to go back out front by double digits while the Toreros went into another field goal drought
• It was too late for another San Diego comeback as Seattle U held out for the 11-point victory

 
Up Next
USD returns home with a quick turnaround to face NCCAA Bethesda University on Saturday, Jan. 17 inside the Jenny Craig Pavilion.