The MSJC men's basketball team lost another close game on Wednesday night as they fell on the road at Copper Mountain in their Inland Empire Athletic Conference opener 65-60.

The Eagles and Fighting Cacti were close throughout the game with MSJC holding a small lead most of the night.  The Eagles led by two 27-25 at the half, but struggled to score down the stretch to come out on the short end after 40 hard fought minutes.  All in all it was a tough shooting night for MSJC as they shot 25% from the floor for the contest.  They stayed in the game with a strong rebounding effort while only turning the ball over 8 times in the game.

Anton Mozga led the way for the Eagles in the loss with 21 points and 12 rebounds as he recorded his 7th double double of the year, he also dished out a team high 6 assists.  Ethan Bell continued to be accurate from the three point line as he connected on 3 of 4 long range attempts on his way to 11 points on the night.  Danilo Da Silva added 8 points and 7 rebounds in the contest and Mekhi Hill had a strong game despite foul trouble with 7 points and 7 boards.  Josh Hardiman came off the bench to score 7 points, he also grabbed 10 rebounds for the Eagles.  Isaiah Skinner rounded out the Eagles scoring on the night with 6.

The loss drops MSJC to 5-6 on the season and 0-1 in IEAC play.  The Eagles will be right back in action on Saturday when they host Barstow in their final game before a week off for the Christmas Holiday.  Saturday's game with Barstow is part of a doubleheader with the women's team, with the women's game tipping off at 1 pm and the men starting at 3.