LOS ANGELES -- Cal State LA's men's basketball made a triumphant return to the court Thursday with an impressive California Collegiate Athletic Association win over conference contender Cal State Monterey Bay.

The Golden Eagles, who hadn't played since a win over Sonoma State on Jan. 6, picked up right where they left off with an 85-77 win over the Otters in University Gym. Cal State LA had its previous five games canceled due to COVID protocols, but, despite a 21-day gap between games, the Golden Eagles showed very little rust in a strong showing. Cal State LA (5-9, 2-6 CCAA) had five players score in double figures in an outstanding offensive showing against Cal State Monterey Bay (8-5, 7-3 CCAA).

Alexander Sokol, who earned CCAA Player of the Week honors after the Golden Eagles' last win, led the way with 20 points and eight rebounds. He was 12-of-14 from the free-throw line and effectively iced the game with six free throws in the final 32 seconds.

Lyrik Shreiner was outstanding once again, scoring 16 points and hitting all six of his free throws. Adrease Jackson and Ben Uloko had 15 points each and Elisha Duplechan had 11 points and four assists.

Jordan May had a game-high 21 points for the Otters, while Andrew Ferguson had 12 points and six rebounds.

Dominic Escobar and Shane Bell had four points each, with Bell adding a team-high five assists to go along with five rebounds.

Cal State LA shot 51.7 percent (30-of-58) and hit 6-of-21 from 3-point range, while Cal State Monterey Bay shot 38.8 percent (26-of-67) and hit 12-of-40 from 3-point range. Cal State LA was 19-of-22 from the free-throw line and hit all 12 attempts in the second half, while Cal State Monterey Bay was 13-of-20 from the line.

Cal State LA had a 37-33 rebounding edge and committed 11 turnovers to eight for the Otters.

Cal State LA trailed early, but went on a 9-1 run to take a 19-11 lead following back-to-back 3-pointers by Sokol. Cal State LA built first-half leads as large as 10 points before settling for a 38-29 halftime lead.

The Golden Eagles took a 12-point lead after a 3-pointer by Jackson, but the Otters came roaring back and tied it at 54-54 after five straight points by May. The Golden Eagles responded, though, with a go-ahead 3-pointer by Duplechan and a pair of free throws by Sokol to make it 59-54 with nine minutes left.

A 6-0 run fueled by baskets by Duplechan, Bell and Jackson boosted the lead back to 10 points, 69-59, with 5:50 to go.

The Otters pulled to within three points, 71-68, with 3:53 to go, but couldn't get any closer. A pair of free throws by Shreiner and a jumper by Shreiner pushed the lead back to seven points, with 2:57 left. A May 3-pointer got the Otters back to within four points, 75-71, but four straight points by Uloko gave the Golden Eagles a 79-71 lead with one minute to go and Sokol took it from there by hitting all six of his free-throw attempts.

Cal State LA will return to action on Saturday with a home game against San Francisco State.