Cal State Fullerton falls to Purdue 74-48 in NCAA men's basketball tournament

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Friday, March 16, 2018
Cal State Fullerton Titans guards wait to shoot from mid-court during a practice for an NCAA men's basketball tournament first-round game, Thursday, March 15, 2018, in Detroit.
Cal State Fullerton Titans guards wait to shoot from mid-court during a practice for an NCAA men's basketball tournament first-round game, Thursday, March 15, 2018, in Detroit.
AP-AP

DETROIT (KABC) -- Cal State Fullerton's hopes of advancing in the NCAA men's basketball tournament were dashed Friday afternoon in Detroit when the Titans fell 74-48 to No. 2 seed Purdue.

On the second full day of tournament play, 15-seeded Fullerton began by hanging tough with the Boilermakers, trailing 13-12 in the middle of the first half.

Titans freshman Josh Pitts and Purdue's Isaac Haas battled at one point, and Haas grabbed a handful of Pitts' jersey while falling down.

Part of the side and back of Pitts' No. 24 jersey was ripped away before he made his way to the bench. He put on No. 41.

By the end of the first half, Boilermaker Carsen Edwards had 13 of his team's 30 points as Fullerton trailed by 9. Meanwhile, the Titans were a mere 8 for 25 from the field and had eight turnovers.

Before Friday, two other Southern California teams, UCLA and San Diego State, were also eliminated from the tournament.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.