RIVERSIDE, Calif. -- Trailing, 69-67, sophomore Elijah McCullough buried a 3-pointer with 27 seconds to play, and the Hornet defense came up big in the waning moments as Sacramento State beat California Baptist, 70-69, on Sunday afternoon at the CBU Events Center.

McCullough's 3-ball was the final tally on a game-closing 17-9 run for Sacramento State over the final 7:40 of the contest. That 3-ball was also McCullough's only field goal attempt of the game, and his eighth made three-pointer of the season. McCullough's shot came from the top of the arc, and after his shot fell true, that set up some tense closing moments. The final 15 frantic seconds included a turnover by each team, as well as two missed 3-point looks by CBU. By the time the dust finally cleared, Sacramento State was able to walk away with its seventh win of the season, and second road victory.

Prior to the McCullough 3-ball, CBU's Gorjok Gak had made two free throws with 57 seconds left to give the Lancers a 69-67 lead. Those free throws and the 3-ball were the only points scored during the final 2:10 of the contest. California Baptist went into the halftime break with a 37-31 lead, but would not push that advantage any further than seven points in the second half. In fact, it was an 8-1 run that included two made 3-balls from William FitzPatrick and a bucket from Bryce Fowler that tied the game at 61-61 with 6:40 to play.

The lead exchanged hands four times in the final six minutes, but McCullough's 3-ball proved to be the final lead swap of the game. Both teams shot well in a game that featured nine lead changes and eight ties. The Hornets shot 51% (29-57) from the field and 47% (7-15) from the 3-point line while the Lancers shot 44% (23-52) from the floor and 40% (10-25) from beyond the arc.

The win improved Sacramento State to 7-6 overall and 2-5 on the road. The win also snapped a three-game losing streak. Each of the last three Hornet wins have come by six points or less. California Baptist, a member of the Western Athletic Conference, had won seven of its last nine games and dropped to 10-7. The Hornet win avenged yesterday's 83-71 loss to CBU as these teams played for the second straight day.

The Hornets and Lancers agreed to play both games on Wednesday of this week after their two-game conference series were canceled. Sacramento State was supposed to play a home and home with Northern Colorado on Thursday and Saturday, and CBU was scheduled to host UT Rio Grande Valley on Friday and Saturday.

The biggest lead of the game by either team was eight points (37-29 CBU), and Sacramento State had a decided advantage in points in the paint (38-22) against a Lancer squad that loves to hoist from beyond the arc. The Hornets had just nine turnovers to go with 15 assists and seven steals.

FitzPatrick was brilliant, scoring a career-high tying 15 points on 5-for-7 from the 3-point arc. The senior was a game-high +13 in plus/minus, and no other Hornet was better than a +4. Twelve of his 15 points came in the second half. Ethan Esposito recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 14 points, 10 rebounds and two steals. Esposito entered the game ranked among the top five players in the Big Sky Conference in both scoring and rebounding.

Bryce Fowler had a well-rounded line of 13 points, five rebounds, six assists and two steals with just one turnover. Christian Terrell had eight points and Zach Chappell chipped in seven points, four rebounds and two assists. The Hornets used just eight players in today's game and all eight scored, including Brandon Davis' six points, three assists and one steal. Jordan Cooke-Harper had four points and three rebounds in 13 minutes, and McCullough had all three of his points during the most important part of the game.

Gak finished with 12 points and 14 rebounds, and Reed Nottage had 18 points, including 13 in the second half.

Sacramento State will be back on the road next week for matchups at Big Sky opponent Southern Utah on Thursday and Saturday. Thursday's game will being at 6:05 p.m. PST, and Saturday's game at 11:05 a.m. PST.