ARCATA, Calif. – Sonoma State rallied from a 15-point second deficit to deal Humboldt State men's basketball a 65-56 loss Thursday night in Lumberjack Arena.
 
The Green and Gold rolled out to a 10-point lead in the first six minutes of action and looked like they were prepared for the conference's top scoring defense. A corner trey from Colin Caslick with 8:50 remaining in the first half put the Jacks ahead by 11, and the home team held a 39-29 advantage at the break.
 
Tyras Rattler Jr. and Tyler Green led HSU scorers with eight points apiece in the opening half. The Jacks shot 45.2 percent from the field and connected on 8-of-19 attempts from outside the arc.
 
"Everything was working top-to-bottom with our playbook," said HSU Head Coach Steve Kinder of the Jacks' first half success. "We were hitting on all cylinders, and everything we threw out there kept them off balance."
 
HSU scored the first five points out of the locker room and took a game-high, 15-point lead with 19:04 to go.
 
A 19-3 run that began with an Armani Nicholis layup at the 16:26 mark put the Seawolves ahead by five, 54-49, midway through the second half. Nicholis scored six points and pulled down six boards in the final 20 minutes.
 
The Jacks offense went cold and shots that fell early were absent late. HSU shot 27.3 percent from the field and 7.7 percent from 3-point range in the second half.
 
"We play tentative, non-aggressive, nonchalant basketball," said Kinder. "We almost scored 40 points in the first half, and we were able to play free against their regionally-touted defense. This was a game of seniors. I think their seniors were playing with urgency, and they understood the game is won inside. Sonoma did a great job of not panicking, playing tough and outrebounding us. It was their seniors who stepped up."
 
Late foul trouble kept Sonoma State's lead safe down the stretch. The Seawolves went 13-of-19 at the charity stripe, and the Jacks committed 15 second half fouls.
 
Sonoma State dominated the glass, outrebounding HSU, 44-26. Nathan Molony-Benjamin recorded a double-double for the Seawolves with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Molony-Benjamin was 6-of-9 shooting, and he went 4-of-4 at the free-throw line.
 
Rattler and Nikhil Lizotte led the Jacks with 11 and 10 points, respectively. Calvin Young II had a team-high eight rebounds to go with eight points and two blocks.
 
HSU closes out its home schedule Saturday against San Francisco State. The Senior Day game will begin at 7:30 p.m., and the seniors for both teams will be recognized during pregame ceremonies.
 
"We don't want to lose and get into the tournament, but that very well could happen," said Kinder. "If we play 40 minutes of basketball like we did in the first 20 minutes tonight, we keep our chin up and be excited about going wherever the tournament takes us. But if we play 40 minutes of basketball like the second 20 minutes, it will be hard to pack our bags and get excited to leave town."