SAN MARCOS -- Cal State LA's men's basketball team got its California Collegiate Athletic Association schedule off to a good start with a big road win at Cal State San Marcos.

The Golden Eagles took an eight-point halftime lead and withstood a strong second-half surge from the Cougars before pulling away for a 76-65 victory Thursday night at The Sports Center. Cal State LA (5-1, 1-0 CCAA) snapped a five-game losing streak against the Cougars and won in San Marcos for the first time since Feb. 22, 2018.

Dominic Escobar led a balanced offensive attack with 18 points, including a big 3-pointer late in the game to essentially put the game out of reach. A'Jahni Levias had 14 points, Deuce Walker had 13 points and Eche Okeke had 12 points, giving the Golden Eagles four players in double figures.

Charlie Henderson had a game-high 20 points for Cal State San Marcos (1-4, 0-1 CCAA).

Corey Cofield had seven points and a team-high eight rebounds for the Golden Eagles, while Kris Krause hit a pair of 3-pointers and scored six points.

Cal State LA shot 41.3 percent for the game (26-of-63) and was successful on 12-of-31 attempts from 3-point range, while Cal State San Marcos shot 48.1 percent (26-of-54) and was 5-of-13 from 3-point range. The Golden Eagles were 12-of-17 from the free-throw line, while the Cougars were 8-of-11. Cal State LA had a 36-33 rebounding edge and committed just 12 turnovers compared to 17 for the Cougars.

Krause hit a 3-pointer to break a 23-23 tie in the first half and the Golden Eagles closed the half with an 11-3 run to take a 34-26 halftime lead.

The Cougars, though, opened the second half with an 11-2 run to retake the lead and the game was tied at 52-52 before Walker hit a pair of 3-pointers and Okeke hit a free throw to put the Golden Eagles ahead for good, 59-52. A 3-pointer by Escobar pushed the lead to 62-54 with five minutes to play, but the Cougars again pushed back, cutting the margin to 63-61 before 3-pointers by Walker and Escobar and a steal and layup by Okeke gave the Golden Eagles a 71-61 lead with 1:08 to go. 

Walker and Shane Bell combined to make five free throws in the final minute to secure the win.

Cal State LA will return to action on Saturday with a road game at Sonoma State.