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SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Senior communication major Siler Schneider led all scorers in Tuesday's Causeway Cup game at the Golden 1 Center with 15 points, six of which were scored from behind the NBA's three-point line late in the game, senior communication TJ Shorts II added another 11 points, and was responsible for four of his team's 11 steals, junior communication major Stefan Gonzalez hit 3 of 4 shots from behind the arc to finish with nine points, and in addition to canning a pair of threes, junior economics major Joe Mooney matched a career high by collecting four steals of his own, but it was two free throws from Sacramento State's Josh Patton, with 1.4 seconds remaining, turned his team's one-point lead to the game's final score: 58-55. 

UC Davis will head to Indiana for Friday's 4 p.m. PT non-conference game with a 1-5 record, Sacramento State will continue its season with a 2-0 mark.

"We have work to do, this is a group I believe in," said UC Davis head coach Jim Les. "And I think when its all said and done, it's going to be a good team. I like the character in that locker room; we are facing a little adversity to start the season, and we're going to battle our way out of it."

Tied at 49-49 with 6:15 remaining, Schneider drilled two straightaway threes from well beyond the NBA arc to push his team ahead by six. 

Regarding those baskets, Les said, "those were big, they gave us some separation. If we string together some stops to go along with those big shots, we could have maybe sustained (that lead). But we're not quite as sharp defensively as we need to be, especially late in the game. He's a kid that likes the moment and he's one to take and make big shots for us."

Even though Sacramento State battled back to take a one-point lead, which extended to three after Patton's free throws, UC Davis still faced an opportunity to enter overtime. With flashbacks of what took place at Long Beach State last season, a three-pointer with minimal time remaining was still a realistic possibility for the Aggies. 

But that last-second shot missed the mark as the horn sounded, ending UC Davis' three-game head-to-head win streak in the process.

Entering Tuesday's game, the Aggies won the first two matchups hosted by the Golden 1 Center, and six of the last eight against the Hornets. Including this result, four of the last six rivalry games have been decided by six points or less.

UC Davis' current five-game road swing will end on Friday when it heads to Bloomington, Indiana, to face the Hoosiers. Not only is this the inaugural game between the two, this trip will also provide an opportunity for a handful of Aggies, who grew up in the Midwest, to return home.

Mooney is from Wauconda, Illinois; senior economics major Garrison Goode and assistant coach Kyle Vogt hail from River Hills and Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Les is originally from Niles, Illinois.

"I'm a Midwest guy and that's a storied program," said Les. "We'll let this sting for about 24 hours and then we'll start getting ready. We have nothing to lose, will fight hard and give Indiana a game. "

 

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