Seniors
DJ Wilson,
Gavin DeJong and
Ryan Beddeo combined for 53 points, but TMU Men's Basketball was unable to keep pace with fourth-ranked William Jessup University, falling 77-92 on Thursday night in Rocklin.
"Ryan, Gavin D. and DJ all had good games tonight," Master's Head Coach
Kelvin Starr said. "Ryan was elite defensively on the best player in the GSAC."
Beddeo limited WJU's Cashemin Williams to nine points, the first time he hasn't scored in double figures since Dec. 2.
Jessup rode a hot start to lead by as many as 24 in the first half, before Master's scored the final six points of the period to go into halftime down by 18.
"In the first half, it was a combination of Jessup going 9-for-13 from 3-point range and us not being able to convert open shots that was really the difference in the game," Starr said.
Wilson scored TMU's first 10 points of the second half, helped by two of his four 3-pointers, reducing the Mustangs' deficit even further.
"DJ came out firing in the second half, allowing us to get to within 10," Starr said.
A
Kaleb Lowery layup two possessions later then decreased WJU's lead to eight, before a 15-3 Warrior run thwarted TMU's comeback bid.
Wilson (21 points), DeJong (17 points, eight rebounds), Lowery (16 points, 12 rebounds) and Beddeo (15 points, six assists) scored all but eight of the Mustang points.
Master's (18-10 overall, 7-10 GSAC) will now travel to Atherton to take on Menlo on Saturday at 2 p.m. in its Golden State Athletic Conference regular season finale.
The winner of Saturday's game will earn the sixth seed in next week's Golden State Athletic Conference and earn a first-round bye.
"It should be a battle considering our respective conference standings," Starr said.
