The Cal State Dominguez Hills men’s basketball team fell just short of winning Saturday’s NCAA Division II national championship.
A late attempt by David Cheatom was no good and top-seed Nova Southeastern secured the rebound, holding on for a 74-73 win over the Toros (30-6) in Evansville, Indiana.
Cheatom had given the Toros a 73-72 lead with a jumper with 25 seconds left. Nova Southeastern went back in front on a pair of free throws by MJ Iraldi with 17.8 seconds remaining.
After the free throws, the Toros, who would have likely given the ball to Jeremy Dent-Smith, but he fouled out with 1:19 left, went right in their offensive set, with Cheatom getting into the paint, but couldn’t get his attempt down.
Dent-Smith (Serra HS) scored a game-high 27 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
The Toros led 42-38 at halftime, but a second-half 15-3 run by the Sharks turned that into a 60-52 deficit. However, the Toros would rally back to take a 65-62 lead and again at 71-68 on a Dent-Smith 3-point play with 2:24 remaining.
Nova Southeastern connected on four free throws to retake the lead at 72-71 with 40.3 left.
The loss ends a remarkable season and tournament for the Toros, who rallied from a 17-point deficit in the national quarterfinal and 19 in the semifinal, to advance to the final.
In Friday’s women’s final, the Toros (36-2) suffered a 70-58 loss against top-seed Grand Valley St in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Asia Jordan had 17 points and 10 rebounds. Kya Pearson finished 11.
The Toros basketball program was the first team in CCAA history to have both teams win the regular-season, postseason and West Regional titles.
Originally Published: March 29, 2025 at 3:32 PM PDT
