Toros Are Impressive in 63-58 Victory : Basketball: Dominguez Hills holds off Riverside, 63-58. The Highlanders are ranked fourth in NCAA Division II. Victory clinches CCAA playoff berth for Toros.

The odds were against the Cal State Dominguez Hills men’s basketball team going into Saturday’s California Collegiate Athletic Assn. game against UC Riverside.

Consider that the Toros had lost three consecutive games and shot only 28% Friday in a 53-47 loss to Cal State San Bernardino.

And it didn’t help that Riverside, winner of five CCAA titles, had an eight-game winning streak and is again winning the league.

But the Toros (15-11 overall, 7-6 in CCAA play) overcame the odds and clinched a berth in next month’s CCAA tournament with an impressive 63-58 victory over the Highlanders (22-3, 11-2), who are ranked fourth nationally among NCAA Division II teams.

“It’s a tough way to come back,” Dominguez Hills Coach Dave Yanai said. “Beating the No. 4 ranked team in the nation and the No. 1 ranked team in our league really gives us momentum. It really boosts our confidence and it lets the kids know we’re in the upper echelon.”

The Toros made 11 of 13 free throws in the last two minutes to secure the victory. Senior guard Josh Oppenheimer was responsible for seven of them.

Defense also played a big role in the victory. The Toros were a lot quicker than the Highlanders.

“Our kids move their feet real well,” Yanai said. “Defensively it was our ballgame. We had an advantage over them on the wing.”

Dominguez Hills led throughout and used an 8-0 run to pull ahead, 31-19, with 4:22 left in the first half.

The stretch included two three-point baskets by senior forward Michael Moore, who scored 13 of his 16 points in the first half.

Riverside struggled against Dominguez Hills’ fierce man-to-man defense. The Highlanders scored their first basket two minutes into the game and were held scoreless for almost five minutes midway through the half.

Dominguez Hills also used strong perimeter shooting to take a 36-27 halftime lead.

Riverside came within three points with 10:12 left to play, but the Toros scored seven unanswered points to take a 50-40 lead with 7:08 remaining.

The Highlanders came within three one more time, but Dominguez Hills answered with another seven-point run.

Dominguez Hills was led by Moore and Oppenheimer, who each had 13 points. Vince Washington had 11. Riverside was led by Gene Altamirano’s 12 points.

The Toros will complete the regular season at Chapmam College on Feb. 29.

The Dominguez Hills women’s basketball team ended its regular season at home with a 69-52 CCAA victory over Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

The Toros (17-10, 9-3) were led by Denise Slater and Karee Bonde, who had 20 points each. Center Cheri Bullet had 10 rebounds. Bonde had a school-record six three-point shots.

Dominguez Hills will meet San Luis Obispo (15-11, 6-6) in the first round of the CCAA tournament at Cal Poly Pomona on Thursday. The Toros finished second in the league and San Luis Obispo finished third.

On Friday Dominguez Hills lost, 61-60, to Pomona.