CLAREMONT, Ca. – The UC Santa Cruz men's basketball team fell to 1-4 on the season following a 79-69 loss to the CMS Stags on Friday night. UC Santa Cruz will be back in action tomorrow at 4pm when they travel to Caltech. Andrew Ferrara-Jones led the team with 16 points and three rebounds while Joseph Espy turned in 14 points and nine boards.
 
How It Happened
UC Santa Cruz stayed tight with CMS throughout a fast-paced first half, sparked by an early burst from Andrew Ferrara-Jones, who hit a free throw, a three, and later added two more triples to help the Slugs build a 19-16 lead at the 8:30 mark. Joseph Espy added a layup and a put-back tip-in, while Thomas Conley delivered a fastbreak bucket and later knocked down a three of his own to push UCSC ahead 22-16. Leo Wagner provided key perimeter scoring, hitting a three at 14:56 and another at 1:04 to pull the Slugs within one at 30-29 before halftime. CMS added two points in the paint but a late free throw from Espy made it 32-30, as UC Santa Cruz closed the half trailing by just two.
 
UC Santa Cruz opened the second half with a jumper from Andrew Ferrara-Jones to tie it 32-32, then got quick scoring from Caden Breznikar and Ben Lim to stay within one at 37-36. After CMS pushed ahead, free throws from Lim and Leo Wagner trimmed the deficit to 41-40 before the Stags extended their lead to 53-42. Wagner drilled a three to make it 53-45, and Thomas Conley added a triple moments later to bring the Slugs back within 55-48. Breznikar kept UCSC alive with a series of drives, including baskets at 12:52, 3:10, and 2:45 to help close the gap to 65-63 with three minutes left. Down the stretch, Joseph Espy delivered three late layups, pulling UCSC within six at both 73–67 and 75–69, but CMS closed it out at the line as the Slugs fell 79-69.