Turnovers Hurt Chapman in Loss

At times Friday night, Chapman College appeared ready to rise up and defeat UC Riverside, the No. 11-ranked Division II team in the nation.

But those moments of excellence were all too brief for the Panthers--and all too often followed by fumbling lapses, which helped Riverside win the California Collegiate Athletic Assn. game, 75-66, at Raincross Square.

The Panthers (11-8, 1-3 in conference) trailed, 63-60, with seven minutes remaining, but the Highlanders (15-3, 3-1) put it away down the stretch.

Chapman shot 68% from the field in the second half after shooting only 38.5% in the first half (52.9% for the game).

“While it was a pretty good effort by our team physically, we’re not, in my opinion, mentally tough enough yet to defeat the likes of Riverside on their own court,” Chapman Coach Bob Boyd said. “If our team improves mentally, we can beat anybody in this league.”

Especially frustrating to Boyd were turnovers in key moments. Chapman didn’t throw away the ball every time down the floor--the Panthers had 18 turnovers--the mistakes simply stymied Panther rallies.

Leading, 24-20, with 5 minutes 59 seconds left in the first half, the Panthers made three consecutive turnovers and Riverside went on an 8-0 run. The Highlanders led, 37-27, at the half.

Chapman rallied in the second half, scoring the first nine points. When Rog Middleton dunked on a fast break with 16:40 remaining, the Panthers trailed, 39-38. But then the Panthers turned the ball over twice in a row.

Anthony Jenkins scored 15 points, Pat Chylinski scored 12 points and former Los Amigos High and Rancho Santiago player Gene Altamirano scored nine.

Middleton scored 29 points and Zlatko Josic had 14.