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SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - Cal State LA and Cal State Dominguez Hills found themselves locked into a tight game with less than a minute remaining for the second consecutive week. Again, the No. 3 seeded Golden Eagles made a few more plays down the stretch to earn a 75-73 win over the No. 2 seed Cal State Dominguez Hills in the semifinals of the 2024 CCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.
 
After trailing most of the game, including 41-32 at halftime, Cal State Dominguez Hills took the lead with 3:10 remaining. Over the next three minutes, the teams would go back and forth in one of the best sequences in the tournament thus far. Each team held multiple leads in the last minutes and the Toros had a shot at the buzzer to send it overtime.
 
Jakob Alamudun gave CSUDH a 71-69 lead with 1:53 left in the game. A free throw by Corey Cofield cut the Golden Eagles' deficit to one (71-70). Cal State LA forced a turnover on its next possession, and Shane Bell hit a reverse layup following an out-of-bounds play to give the Toros back the lead (72-71).
 
After getting another stop off a turnover, Bell took the clock to under 30 seconds before driving the right of the lane and going off the glass for the three-point lead (74-71). CSUDH answered with a shot in the lane by Alamudun and proceeded to foul to send Dominic Escobar to the free throw line with 13 seconds left. His first shot went left, but he knocked in the second to give CSLA a 75-73 lead.
 
With a chance to tie or go to overtime, the Toros looked for the best shot. With six seconds left, Jayden Winfrey drove the lane. His right-handed layup sailed above the hands of the defenders, but it went off the glass just a little too hard, and it rolled off the front of the rim, and Cal State LA secured the rebounds for the win.
 
Eche Okeke and Bell each had 16 points to lead five Golden Eagles in double-figures. Escobar came off the bench to score 14 points, and Cofield added 12 points and six rebounds. A'Jahni Levias had 10 points and a game-high five assists.
 
CCAA Player of the Year Jeremy Dent-Smith scored 29 points to lead the Toros. He was 8-of-13 from the field, 4-of-6 from long range, and 9-of-9 at the free throw line. Alamudun posted 18 points and seven rebounds. Alex Garcia also had 10 points, including two 3-pointers.
 
Cal State LA will advance to the championship game of the 2024 CCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. The Golden Eagles will face the winner of No. 1 seed Cal State San Bernardino and No. 5 Cal State East Bay in the championship game at 8 p.m.