Box Score Playing games on back-to-back days proved to be too much of a disadvantage to overcome for the Colorado College men's basketball team.

After fighting their way to a 39-37 lead after 20 minutes, the Tigers ran out of gas in the second half and dropped an 80-71 decision to Caltech on Thursday afternoon.

The Beavers led 70-53 when Brent Cahill sank a pair of free throws with 3:42 to play, but had to withstand a furious comeback attempt that saw the CC pull to within seven points with 1:09 to play.

Junior forward John Hatch led the Tigers with 16 points, while junior guard Eric Houska scored 15.

Junior forward Chris Martin recorded his third double-double of the season with 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.

Freshman guard Alec Andrews led Caltech with a game-high 20 points. He made five of eight shots from behind the arc and went 5-for-8 from the charity stripe.

Cahill finished 17 points for the Beavers, while senior guard Ricky Galliani added 15.

Sophomore guard Edmond Pendleton scored 12 of his career-high 14 points during the first half when Colorado College never trailed.

Caltech took its first lead 24 seconds into the second half when senior forward David LeBaron completed a three-point play and the Beavers extended their lead to 43-39 after Andrew hit a three-pointer 33 seconds later.

Cal Tech, which was playing its first game since losing to Carthage College on Dec. 19, improved to 1-8 on the season.

Colorado College begins its Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference schedule on Friday, Jan. 6, when Texas Lutheran University visits Reid Arena for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff.