Stingy defense gives Panthers convincing win over La Verne

ORANGE, Calif. - From the outset, the Chapman University men's basketball controlled the tempo of the game with its defense en route to a 63-47 victory over the University of La Verne on Friday night at the Hutton Sports Center in the Panthers home opener. Chapman held the Leopards to just 30 percent shooting on the night.

Utilizing the inside presence of junior C Jared Kaiser and sophomore F Justin Riley, the Panthers were able to jump out to a 23-8 lead with five minutes remaining in the first half. La Verne (1-3) capitalized on Chapman's late first half foul trouble to score seven of its final nine points of the half from the free throw line which narrowed the Panthers' half time lead to 29-17.

The second half was much of the same as Chapman (2-0) never trailed building as much as a 26-point lead midway through the second half. Riley finished with a double-double for the Panthers with 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds and Kaiser added a game-high 17 points and five rebounds. Chapman out-rebounded the Leopards 40-20 in the game.

The Leopards were lead by junior G Billy Nicolini who had 11 points, seven of which came