SAN DIEGO - The Point Loma men's basketball team's seven-game winning streak was snapped by Dixie State, 76-65, on Saturday, Feb. 24.
 
The Trailblazers closed out the first half on a 19-2 run to take a 36-20 lead into the locker room. PLNU did not score in the final 7:58 of the first half. However, the Sea Lions made the necessary halftime adjustment and opened the second half on a 30-13 run to retake the lead at 51-50. The teams traded baskets the next four minutes before Dixie State hit another run as the Trailblazers outscored PLNU down the stretch 16-4 to secure the outright PacWest regular season championship.
 
Ziggy Satterthwaite posted a double-double for Point Loma with 16 points and 11 rebounds. He was 5-of-8 from the free throw line and 6-of-7 at the line. Josh Rodriguez added 12 points, six assists and matched a season-high with five steals. Skyler White added 11 points, including three 3-pointers, in his senior day performance. Dixie State's Brandon Simister scored a game-high 19 points on 6-of-7 shooting.

Team Records
Point Loma (21-8, 15-5 PacWest), Hawaii Hilo (21-6, 18-2 PacWest)
 
PacWest Implications
The loss locked down fourth place in the final PacWest standings. The 15 conference wins are the most for Point Loma as a member of the PacWest. The victory for Dixie State meant the Trailblazers clinched the 2017-18 PacWest Championship outright at 18-2.

The Turning Point
While the first half run put PLNU in a deep hole, the Sea Lions were able to retake the lead in the second half and make it a whole new game. It was not until Dixie State went on a 10-0 run from the 7:25 mark to the 2:59 mark in the second half. Trevor Hill hit two 3-pointers on the backside of the run which put PLNU down 70-61 less than three minutes remaining.
 
Words from Coach Looney
On Dixie State: "They were hungry and wanted to win the championship. For the first 20 minutes they played much harder than we did. They shot a high percentage and deserved to win the game."
 
On his team: "I am disappointed with the approach our guys had tonight. I thought we had a good game plan going in; we just didn't follow it."
 
On halftime adjustments: "We knew they'd switch defenses at the half. They try to get you to shoot a lot of 3-pointers. Our game plan was, regardless of what they were doing, to throw it into the post. In the first half we didn't do that, and then in the first 8-10 minutes of the second half that is all we did to make our run. Then we went away from that down the stretch. If you look at the numbers, nearly half our attempts came from the 3-point line and when you aren't shooting a good percentage, you won't beat a good team like Dixie State."
 
On the lull at the end: "I think you expend so much energy trying to fight your way back, that it makes it even harder to close the game."
 
On the upcoming PacWest tournament: "We have to be tough, just like we were for the last month leading up to tonight's game."
 
News and Notes
> Point Loma was only outrebounded three times this season, and two of the times was by Dixie State
> Point Loma is 16-0 this season when scoring 70 or more points
> The loss snapped a seven-game winning streak for PLNU
> This was the final home game for Yusuf Shehata and Skyler White

Up Next
The Point Loma men's basketball team is the No. 4 seed in the PacWest Championships. They will face No. 5 Concordia on Thursday, Mar. 1 in the opening round.