BAKERSFIELD, Calif. ? The shorthanded CSUB men's basketball team stayed with Big West Conference frontrunner Pacific but ran out of gas in the second half as the Tigers pulled away for a 67?58 win Saturday night at Rabobank Arena.

As if playing the one of the top midmajor teams in the west wasn't a daunting enough task, the Roadrunners tried it without two starters as center Santwon Latunde and point guard Alex Johnson continued to miss time with shoulder injuries. For the better part of 34 minutes, the 'Runners stayed close, but Pacific's depth and athleticism proved too much in the end.

A Cory Brown (Lakeside/El Capitan HS) layup got CSUB (3-12 overall) to within 28?24 with 3:27 left in the first half before Pacific (9-4) scored the final eight points of the period ? punctuated by a long Steffan Johnson three-pointer at the buzzer ? to take a 36-24 lead at halftime. A tough turnaround jumper by Zack Grasmick (Strathmore/Granite Hills HS) got CSUB back to within six at 53?47 with less than seven minutes remaining, but they would get no closer as the Tigers kept the lead in the eight to 10 point range for the balance of the game.

Junior swingman Terrence Johns (Chicago/Bakersfield College) led all scorers with 22 points. Sophomore forward Trent Blakley (Alta Loma HS) continued his strong run of recent play with 11 points and five rebounds.

Johnson scored 14 of his team?high 17 points in the first half to lead a trio of Tigers in double figures. Anthony Brown, who scored 25 points against the 'Runners last season, chipped in 12 points while center Michael Nunnally scored 11.

CSUB will have just one day to prepare for its next game. The 'Runners will host Loyola Marymount Monday night in the final game of a four-game homestand.

UNIVERSITY OF THE PACIFIC (10-4) -- Johnson 5-13 3-4 17; Brown 4-8 4-7 12; Nunnally 5-7 1-3 11; LeDuc 3-6 2-2 9; Troyer 2-10 1-2 6; Ford 2-2 0-2 4; Kirby 1-3 2-2 4; Smith 1-1 0-0 2; Morgan 1-2 0-0 2; Neimeyer 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 24-53 13-22 67.

CSU BAKERSFIELD (3-12) -- Johns 7-18 5-5 22; Blakley 4-7 0-0 11; C. Brown 3-4 2-2 8; Bragg 2-9 3-4 7; Hall 2-5 1-2 5; R. Brown 1-4 0-0 2; Grasmick 1-7 0-0 2; Robinson 0-1 1-2 1; Rose 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 20-55 12-15 58.

Halftime--UOP 36-24. 3-point goals--UOP 6-18 (Johnson 4-8; Troyer 1-6; LeDuc 1-2; Kirby 0-1; Morgan 0-1), CSUB 6-19 (Johns 3-10; Blakley 3-4; Bragg 0-2; Grasmick 0-3). Fouled out--UOP-None, CSUB-None. Rebounds--UOP 32 (Ford 7), CSUB 37 (Hall 5; C. Brown 5; Blakley 5). Assists--UOP 10 (Johnson 5), CSUB 12 (Bragg 5). Total fouls--UOP 10, CSUB 19. Technical fouls--UOP-None, CSUB-None. A-1950