Box Score By Jacob Norling
February 21, 2026
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Westmont Men's Basketball (16-10, 13-7 PacWest) never once had a lead on Saturday afternoon in Santa Barbara, where the Warriors ultimately fell to the Dominican Penguins (16-10, 11-9) 67-61. A week ago the Warriors saw a ferocious second half attack propel them past the Penguins on Dominican's home floor. There would be no run today, as Dominican led from start to finish to snap Westmont's five-game winning streak.
 
The Warriors shot only 35.0% from the field (21-60), and shot an abysmal 21.4% from three-point land (6-28). Westmont got to the line 20 times, but missed seven of their looks from the stripe as well. Fourteen turnovers also did not help the cause, as it seemed like any whiff of momentum was immediately snuffed out by an incomplete possession.
 
The Penguins shot 50% in the first half (12-28) before cooling off a bit in the second, but Dominican's defensive efforts helped the road team defend what was at one point a 13-point lead.
 
"We were at 58 points until the final seconds," pointed out head coach Justin Leslie, "when we had 58 in the second half against them last week. We got open shots and didn't convert, whether it by the rim or on the perimeter.
 
"Then we also had a season-high of live-ball turnovers, which was tragic. We had eight live-ball turnovers, which led to opportunities for them to score. We had one bench basket today. That's something that's been a strength of our team, but we had none in the first half, and came away with basically nothing after that.
 
"Dominican was aggressive, they played physical, and we just didn't meet the challenge from top-to-bottom today. That's what was disappointing about today. They came onto our home floor and they were the aggressors. We allowed them to be comfortable from the start, and ultimately, that's the result you get when that's the type of performance you put out on the court."
 
Westmont will return to action on Thursday night in Azusa, where the Warriors will take on the Cougars at 7:30 p.m.