STOCKTON — For the first 10 minutes of Tuesday night's game at Pacific, the Stanislaus State Warriors looked like they were ready to challenge the Division I athletes.

That's until the Tigers became a little quicker and a little more athletic than these athletic Warriors as Pacific avoided embarrassment in the 91-66 win in its home opener.
 
The Warriors nailed the first three-pointer of the game and led 18-17 nine minutes into the game on a layup. But turnovers led to a big UOP run that deflated Stan State's offense.
 
During a 5:35 stretch in the first half, the Warriors turned the ball over seven times, which led to a 14-2 Pacific run to make it 31-20. Then the West Coast Conference team rolled while Stanislaus struggled on offense.
 
Despite valiant efforts, shots by the Warriors rim-out, roll-out, bounce-out while the quicker and bigger Division I athletes ran the floor and over-powered their opponents.
 
Still, the Warriors have a lot to be confident about and look forward to as they embark on a trip for a pair of games against two Division II power programs in Denver this weekend.
 
Vasilije Saraba looked like he can compete at this level. He had eight points early but found himself in foul trouble. Andy Cleaves and Ty Davis ran in step with the Tigers, so they should be able to do well against CCAA opponents.
 
New Warriors Darius Scott and Jourdan Johnson led with 12 points each while Fred Lavender chipped in nine. Joseph Alvarez also had nine and Cleaves scored seven. Johnson made three three-pointers but Stan State was 6-for-25 from the arch.
 
With the game out of hand in the second half, coach Paul Trevor turned to the second unit for them to gain court experience. In the end, Trevor used all 13 players who suited up. The non-starters scored 48 of the team's 66 points.
 
UOP (2-1) went to the line 31 times and made 24 free throws as Stanislaus was called for 27 fouls. The Warriors were 16-for-23 from the foul line. Pacific made nine three-pointers and was led by four players in double figures. Jahlil Tripp led with 17 points.
 
Stan State ended up with 19 turnovers.
 
Friday, the Warriors will face Metro State, a regular in the Division II Elite Eight with three appearances since 2012. The Roadrunners was a national championship runner-up team in 2014. On Saturday, Stan State takes on Regis, the reigning RMAC Champion, which went 27-6 last season following a 20-9 year.