LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Cal Lutheran men's basketball (8-8, 3-4 SCIAC) fell to Occidental (12-3, 5-1 SCIAC) on the road on Saturday afternoon by a score of 79-65. Jaden Young led the Kingsmen with 13 points and four assists, but a strong offensive second half from the Tigers led them to the win.

Aidan Crawford got Cal Lutheran on the board with an early layup, and threes from Matthew Verkamp, Young, and Ze'ev Remer gave the Kingsmen an 11-6 lead after the game's first four minutes. Occidental was able to respond to take a 28-18 lead at the nine-minute mark. The Kingsmen rekindled the hot shooting, and a three from Josh DeVore tied the game at 30-30. A PJ Jourdain triple a couple possessions later retook the lead for Cal Lutheran, 33-32. A layup from Jourdain put the Kingsmen ahead 37-36 heading into the break.

Five quick points from Young kept the game tied at 42-42 with 18 minutes remaining, but the Tigers began to separate shortly after. By the nine-minute mark, Occidental held a 62-53 lead. Cal Lutheran would fight, cutting its deficit to four points after a Cody Shen steal led to a fastbreak layup by Crawford to make the score 64-60 with just under five minutes to play. The Tigers stayed disciplined, and eventually they emerged victorious, 79-65.

Young led Cal Lutheran with 13 points and four assists. Verkamp collected nine points, a team-high 12 rebounds, and two steals.

Cal Lutheran will move on to face Chapman on the road on Monday, tip-off at 4pm.