Greg Siller

Men's Basketball

Dent-Smith's 32 points helps lead Toros into the CCAA Tournament Championship

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SAN MARCOS, Calif. - Jeremy Dent-Smith's 32 points led five Toros in double-figures as the No. 1 seed Cal State Dominguez Hills held off No. 4 Cal Poly Humboldt for a 93-82 win in the CCAA Men's Basketball Tournament semifinals. 
 
Dent-Smith went 11-of-17 from the field and 6-of-11 from 3-point range to score the most points in a tournament game since 2022. His efficiency helped CSUDH shoot .615 percent for the game, including .545 percent from behind the arc.
 
Adam Afifi missed only one shot as he finished 8-of-9 (2-of-2 on 3-pointers) and scored 21 points to go along with his 10 rebounds. David Cheatom dished out a game-high seven assists while scoring 11 points. Alex Garcia scored 13 points, including five critical points in the final two minutes as Humboldt tried to make a comeback. DJ Guest added 11 points off the bench.
 
CCAA Freshman of the Year Aidan Fowler led Cal Poly Humboldt with 24 points. Josiah Sanders was right behind with 23 points as he shot 9-of-17 from the field and made three 3-pointers. Rob Diaz III chipped in 13 points, and Marsai Mason had 10.
 
The Lumberjacks scored the first basket of the game and never led again, but it seemed they were always just a few possessions away. CSUDH went up 26-12 before Humboldt battled back and cut it to one (37-36) at the six-minute mark. The Toros answered with a 7-0 run and took a 46-43 lead into the half. Both teams shot .500 percent or better in the half from the field and from behind the arc.
 
After trading baskets to begin the second half, CSUDH went on a 13-2 run to go up by 18 (74-56) midway through the second half. The Lumberjacks responded with a 9-2 run of its own and cut the deficit to eight (83-75) with three minutes remaining. Garcia proceeded to hit a layup and a 3-pointer on back-to-back possessions to extend the lead back to 12 (88-76) before a layup by Dent-Smith and a dunk by Afifi sealed the win.
 
Cal State Dominguez will advance to the CCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship game for the third time in program history and the first since 2011. The Toros will face the No. 2 seeded Chico State Wildcats at 5 p.m. with the 2025 CCAA Tournament Championship on the line.