While one newcomer shined in last night's closer-than-expected exhibition victory for the USD men's basketball team, two key returners are sitting out indefinitely.
In his USD debut, junior Roberto Mafra, a 6-foot-9, 235-pound forward/center from Brazil, scored 21 points in leading the way to a 71-67 victory over Cal State Los Angeles at Jenny Craig Pavilion before a student-heavy crowd of 1,312.
“Roberto did some very good things,” said Toreros head coach Bill Grier. “He's going to help us as the year goes on. He gave us a good presence inside.”
But senior starter Gyno Pomare and sophomore reserve Clinton Houston may not return to the court anytime soon. Both have been suspended for unrelated violations of team rules, Grier said.
When asked if he was disappointed, Grier kept his comments short.
“Very,” he said.
With the second-year coach already concerned about the team's defensive effort, being without the pair, as well as injured junior guard/forward De'Jon Jackson (knee strain), didn't help.
As a team, the Toreros made 57 percent of their shots, but at times struggled on defense to contain a Golden Eagles team that made 50 percent of their attempts. That opened the door for Cal State L.A., which led by as many as nine with 12:31 left in the second half.
“I felt there was a long stretch where Cal State L.A. went at us and we didn't respond,” Grier said. “We were on our heels.”
USD battled back and regained the lead for good, thanks to a jumper by sophomore guard Trumaine Johnson that put the Toreros up 69-67 with 2:35 remaining in the game.
Sophomore Rob Jones and senior Brandon Johnson joined Mafra in tallying double figures, scoring 14 and 11, respectively. Jones also paced USD's rebounding effort, finishing with eight.
With their lone exhibition behind them, the Toreros look toward their season opener Nov. 15 at UNLV.
Staff writer Mark Zeigler contributed to this report.
