St. George, UT- The Swords were looking for a priceless two game conference road sweep, but the Red Storm of Dixie State had other plans, defeating Chaminade by a final score of 82-71.
The Swords, coming off a solid all-around performance in a victory against the 'Lopes of Grand Canyon, ran into a red-hot Dixie State squad. The Red Storm were knocking down shots in the opening twenty minutes, shooting 54% from three and 48% from the floor. Dixie point guard Adam Ross was especially proficient, going 3-3 in the opening twenty minutes from three. Meanwhile, Chaminade shot 35% from the floor and 29% from three in the opening half.
CUH warmed up significantly in the second half, as Shane Hanson (3 three's) and Waly Coulibaly (2 three) found success stretching the Dixie defense. Steven Bennett found room to roam, as the junior scored 20 points to go along with 7 rebounds and 6 assists.
Defensively, Chaminade tightened up as well, limiting the Red Storm to 39% from the floor and 22% from three. Freshman Dominique Cooks added 12 points and 5 rebounds in defeat.
Three Swords (Cousins, Pearson, Bennett) grabbed seven rebounds on the night, but it wasn't enough as rebounding proved the difference as the Red Storm out-rebounded Chaminade 51-35.
The Swords move to 4-7, 1-1 in Pac West play. The Red Storm move to 8-3, 2-0 in the Pac West. Chaminade is back in action on January 14th against Hawaii Pacific. Game time is set for 7:30 PM HT at the Neal Blaisdell Center.
