Cal State Dominguez Hills Wins Again but Coach Not Cheering

Cal State Dominguez Hills won its second game in three outings Thursday night, but you couldn’t tell it by Coach Dave Yanai’s comments.

Yanai lashed out at his team for playing “stupid basketball” following its 78-74 victory over visiting North Central Illinois, a Division III team.

“I’m tired of the excuses,” Yanai said. “If you put on a uniform you better be ready to play.”

The Toros had 15 turnovers, allowing North Central (4-3) to claw back numerous times.

Yanai was also upset that the Toros (2-6) allowed Drew Hunter to come off the bench, penetrate the key almost at will and finish with a game-high 24-points for the Cardinals.

“We’re not going to beat people if we don’t learn how to handle the pressure,” Yanai said.

As an example, Yanai pointed to the play of guard Raymond Bennett, who ignited a 16-2 first-half scoring run with three consecutive baskets and an assist. But shortly thereafter Bennett picked up his third foul and left the game.

“That hurt us,” Yanai said. “It was poor judgment on his part.”

Junior guard Robert Barksdale broke a 15-15 tie with a jumper nine minutes into the contest and then Bennett, a 6-foot freshman from Carson High, followed with three consecutive baskets and a pass to center Norman Francis that led to another basket. Cal State Dominguez Hills led, 25-17, with 7:35 remaining in the half.

When Bennett left the game 25 seconds after Francis’ basket, Barksdale picked up the offensive slack. In the next five minutes the 6-foot-1 Hawthorne High grad added seven of his 12 first-half points, helping the Toros to a 36-19 lead.

Cal State Dominguez Hills, which starts three freshmen, opened the second half with six turnovers, allowing Illinois to cut the lead to 56-47 with 12 minutes remaining. But a three-point basket by senior guard Brian Johnson and a free throw by junior center Joseph Janney steadied the Toros.