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    Cal State Fullerton’s big 2nd half not enough in loss to Northern Colorado
    • November 24, 2025

    PORTLAND, Ore. — Joshua Ward scored 31 points and Bryce Cofield had 27, but Cal State Fullerton lost to Northern Colorado, 97-93, on Sunday in its final game at the Portland Invitational.

    The Titans (2-5) erupted for 60 points in the second half and cut what had been a 12-point margin to three with 28 seconds left before falling to the Bears (5-1), who shot 34 for 40 at the free-throw line to help secure the win. Fullerton went 1-2 at the three-day tournament, beating St. Thomas (of Minnesota) and losing to Portland and Northern Colorado.

    Northern Colorado held a 39-33 lead at halftime, but the teams mostly traded points for the first 13 minutes of the second half. Fullerton pulled within one with just over 10 minutes left, but the Bears responded with a 16-5 run to push their lead back to 12 points at 77-65 with 5:43 left. The Titans were still down by 11 after NCU’s Quinn Denker made a pair of free throws with 2:39 remaining, but Fullerton went on a 16-8 run to get within 93-90 on a Cofield layup with 28 seconds left.

    The Titans were forced to foul and the Bears’ Zach Bloch made two free throws. Ward missed a 3-point attempt on the ensuing possession and NCU’s Vincent Delano made two more free throws for a 97-90 lead with 19 seconds left. Ward made a 3-pointer with 12 seconds left but the Bears held on.

    Bloch scored a career-high 32 points on 9-of-14 shooting (7 for 12 from 3-point range) to pace Northern Colorado. Brock Wisne added 15 points and added nine rebounds and Denker scored 13 points. Egan Shields contributed 12 points and eight rebounds, while Ibu Yamazaki scored all 10 of his points after halftime, going 8 for 8 at the free-throw line.

    Ward shot 11 for 17 from the field (4 for 8 from 3-point range) for Fullerton and made all five of his free throws to go with five rebounds, two assists and two steals, while Cofield shot 9 for 21 from the field and 9 for 11 from the free-throw line to go with seven rebounds and three assists.

    Jefferson De La Cruz Monegro added 12 points for the Titans, who turned the ball over just four times after having issues with ball security in the first two games of the tournament. Landon Seaman had 11 points and Christian Williams grabbed a team-best nine rebounds.

    Both teams shot 45% from the field and 29% from behind the arc, but Fullerton was outrebounded 41-34 and made 11 fewer free throws than the Bears (shooting 23 for 33). The Titans outscored the Bears 48-36 in the paint.

    UP NEXT

    Fullerton returns home and will host Pepperdine on Saturday at 2 p.m.

    ​ Orange County Register 

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