SEASIDE, Calif. — With many Otter alumni, including the architect of the Otter basketball program—former coach and director of athletics Bill Trumbo—in attendance to honor the memory of the greatest Otter player of all, the Cal State Monterey Bay men's basketball team bounced back into the win column with an 83–77 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills Saturday night in The Kelp Bed.

In a pregame ceremony, the Otters remembered Devougn "Trini" Lamont, a player widely regarded as the best in Otter history, who passed away on the court while playing professionally in France this season. Saturday's game was a fitting opportunity for the tribute as Dominguez Hills is coached by Steve Becker and his assistant Carlos Arroyo, both of whom were teammates of Lamont's at CSUMB.

Early on, it appeared as if the Toros were the inspired team. They knocked down seven of their first 11 3–point attempts to keep things close for most of the first half.

But the Otters finished the half with a flourish, and when Patrick Lefiti (Bay Point/Los Medanos College) tossed one in from three–quarters court to beat the first half buzzer, CSUMB carried a 45–38 lead into intermission.

The Otters led by as many as 12 points in the second half before the Toros twice trimmed the deficit to one point. But CSUMB answered each challenge before making six consecutive free throws in the final 52 seconds to keep the Toros at bay.

Sophomore guard Evan Zeller (Mission Viejo HS), the CCAA's leading scorer through 14 games, matched his season average to lead the Otters with 17 points. CSUMB also got 12 points off the bench from Marquise Washington (Los Angeles/Cerritos College) as well as 10 points and four assists from Alex Fertig (Fresno/Buchanan HS).

Shaq Hunter came off the bench to lead all scorers with a season–high 18 points for Dominguez Hills.

CSUMB (8–6, 4–4 CCAA) hits the road for its next two games against fellow CCAA hopefuls Cal State San Bernardino and Humboldt State Thursday and Saturday. The Otters return home to host Cal State Stanislaus Jan. 23.