49ers Head To Big West Tournament
Long Beach Takes On UCSB Wednesday
March 7, 2005
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UPCOMING SCHEDULE | Wednesday, March 9 vs. UC Santa Barbara
8:15 pm, Anaheim Convention Center (7,734), Anaheim, CA
Internet Radio: www.longbeachstate.com
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| LONG BEACH STATE PROBABLE STARTERS | | F-3-Shawn Hawkins (6-6, 225, Jr., 11.6 ppg, 5.1 rpg) | | F-10-Cody Pearson (6-4, 198, Sr., 6.4 ppg, 4.5 rpg) | | C-0-Onye Ibekwe (6-8, 254, So., 6.4 ppg, 6.5 rpg) | | G-1-Jibril Hodges (6-2, 189, Jr., 12.8 ppg, 2.2 rpg) | | G-52-Chris Jenkins (6-8, 186, Sr., 5.6 ppg, 1.4 rpg) |
| UCSB PROBABLE STARTERS | | F-4-Derek Rasp (6-5, 210, Fr., 6.2 ppg, 2.5 rpg) | | F-42-Glenn Turner (6-9, 220, So., 3.9 ppg, 4.7 rpg) | | G-2-Josh Davis (6-5, 200, Jr., 10.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg) | | G-12-Alex Harris (6-5, 200, Fr., 7.8 ppg, 3.0 rpg) | | G-15-Chrismen Oliver (5-8, 155, Sr., 10.0 ppg, 3.0 apg) |
2005 BIG WEST CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT
March 9-12, Anaheim Convention Center (7,734) Anaheim, California
Wednesday, March 9
6 pm: No. 5-UC Irvine (15-12) vs. No. 8-Idaho (8-21)
8:15 pm: No. 6-LBSU (10-19) vs. No. 7-UCSB (10-17)
Radio: Live on internet at www.longbeachstate.com
Thursday, March 10
6 pm: No. 3-CS Fullerton (18-9) vs. lowest seed
8:15 pm: No. 4-CS Northridge (17-12) vs. highest seed
(Both games televised live on KVMD-TV)
Friday, March 11
6 pm: No. 1-Pacific (25-2) vs. lowest seed
8:15 pm: No. 2-Utah State (22-7) vs. highest seed
(Both games televised live on KVMD-TV)
Saturday, March 12
9 pm: Championship Game (Televised live on ESPN)
The Records: Long Beach State closed out its regular season by winning seven of its last eight games to finish 10-19 overall and 7-11 in the Big West. The 49ers tied UCSB for sixth place in the league standings, but will receive the No. 6 seed in the conference tournament. Last week the 49ers defeated Cal Poly (71-52) and UCSB (58-57) at The Pyramid. UCSB, the 49ers opening round opponent, is 10-17 on the year and was 7-11 in league play.
The Coach: 49er Head Coach Larry Reynolds (UC Riverside, 1976) is 21-62 (.253) in his third year at LBSU. In five years as the head coach at CS San Bernardino, Reynolds was 110-35 (.759) and led the Coyotes to two NCAA Division II Elite Eight appearances.
Series Records: The 49ers lead in their series with UCSB by a 50-46 count. On December 28 the Gauchos won 54-47 at The Thunderdome. On March 5 the 49ers won 58-57 at The Pyramid. Long Beach and UCSB have only met two times at the conference tournament and each team has claimed one victory. The last meeting came in the first round of the 1995 Tournament at UNLV and the 49ers prevailed in that contest 67-64. Long Beach was the No. 3 seed that year and ended up winning the tournament title.
UCSB Facts: The Gauchos finished 10-17 overall and 7-11 in the Big West Conference. UCSB lost six of its final eight games in the regular season. Guard Chrismen Oliver leads UCSB at 10.3 points per game while shooting .345 (39-113) from three-point range. Josh Davis is next at 10.0 points per game and 4.7 rebounds per outing. UCSB is averaging 59.6 points per game and shooting .409 from the field. Gaucho opponents check in at 63.3 points per game, while shooting .433 from the field. UCSB is being out-rebounded this year by a 34.9 to 30.9 margin.
Previous Meetings With UCSB: The Gauchos won the Big West opener between the two 54-47 on December 28. Casey Cook led the way with 15 points and nine rebounds. Cody Pearson led the 49ers with 11 points and Travon Free had seven points and 19 rebounds. Long Beach shot just .300 (18-60) from the field, including 1-18 from three-point range. UCSB shot just .375 (18-48) from the field. In the re-match on March 5 at The Pyramid, the 49ers got a lay-up from Kevin Houston with 2.5 seconds remaining to defeat UCSB 58-57. Jibril Hodges led the 49ers with 17 points, including hitting 5-9 three-pointers. Shawn Hawkins and Louis Darby both had eight points. Long Beach shot 11-21 (.524) from three-point range for the game and had 18 assists to just 11 turnovers. Derek Rasp led the Gauchos with 12 points.
Fabulous February: The 49ers went 5-3 in the month of February,including winning five of its last six. The month began with a tough 68-66 loss at CS Northridge and then an 87-58 defeat at Pacific. The 49ers won four in a row before falling at Utah State last Thursday. But, the month ended on a high note as the 49ers won 71-58 at Idaho, snapping an 18-game road losing skid.
Tough Defense: In its last eight games the 49ers have played some outstanding defense. In those eight outings, opponents are averaging 59.6 points per game and shooting .428 (182-425) from the field. The 49ers have averaged 63.5 points per outing in that span and committed just 11.5 turnovers per game. The most points the 49ers have allowed in the streak was 73 points to UC Davis in overtime. The 49ers have held five of its last eight opponents to under 60 points, including a season-low 50 points by UC Irvine. The 49ers have also been able to get to the free throw line taking 142 free throw attempts (96-142) to its opponents 119 (71-119).
Tournament Experience: Only two current 49er players have ever played in a Big West Basketball Tournament game. Both Cody Pearson and Chris Jenkins were freshmen in when the 49ers made their last appearance in the tournament in the 2001-02 campaign. Long Beach lost its opening game, 72-65 to UC Irvine. Pearson played 10 minutes off the bench, finishing with three points, four rebounds and an assist. Chris Jenkins played 11 minutes off the bench. He did not score, but had one rebound and one steal.
At The Line: Three 49ers have been getting the job done at the free throw line recently. Kevin Houston hit 17 consecutive free throws before missing one vs. UCSB. In his last seven games he is 23 of 26 (.885) at the line. Jibril Hodges has hit eight straight and is 16-18 (.889) in his last eight games, while Shawn Hawkins is 19-26 (.731) in his last seven games at the line. Houston is now shooting .783 (36-46) at the free throw line for the year, but 26 of those 46 attempts have come in the last seven games. In his first 22 games this year he was 13-20 (.650) at the line.
Protecting The Basketball: The 49ers have also been taking care of the basketball, thus enabling them to win close games. Thursday night against Cal Poly the 49ers had a season-low nine turnovers. Saturday vs. UCSB, 11. In the last eight outings the 49ers have committed just 92 turnovers (11.5). In the 49ers win over UC Davis they had 11 turnovers and the previous week in wins against UC Irvine and CS Fullerton the 49ers had just 10 turnovers in each contest . When the 49ers have fewer turnovers than their opponents they are 7-4.
Four In A Row: The recent four-game win streak was the longest for the 49ers since the end of the 2001-02 campaign when Long Beach won its final five regular season games.
Nail-Bitters: The 49ers have won10 games this year and seven of those have come down to the last second and by a grand total of 17 points. Long Beach has won three games by one point (Indiana State 38-37, Idaho 53-52, UCSB 58-57), one game by two points (UC Riverside 58-56), one game by three (CS Fullerton 66-63), one by four in overtime (UC Davis 77-73) and one by five (UC Irvine 55-50). That trend had been bucked in the two games prior to the UCSB contest as the 49ers won by 13 points (71-58) at Idaho and 19 points (71-52) against Cal Poly.
More Assists Than Turnovers: In five of the last six games the 49ers have recorded more assist than turnovers. Saturday the 49ers had 18 assists and 11 turnovers. Thursday night against Cal Poly the count was 11 assists and a season-low nine turnovers. Last Saturday at Idaho the 49ers had 14 assists and just 12 turnovers. Six times this season have the 49ers registered more assists than turnovers, including thee games in a row.
Leading At The Half: The 49ers are 4-3 this year when they lead at the half. Amazingly though the 49ers have led at the half only once in its last eight games (at Idaho), seven of which have been victories. That one time was at Idaho when the 49ers held a 36-27 halftime lead. In five of the six recent wins (UC Riverside, CS Fullerton, UC Davis, Cal Poly) the 49ers trailed at the half and against UC Irvine it was tied at 26. The games where LBSU led at the half were Sacramento State, Loyola Marymount, Indiana State, at UC Davis, Idaho, at CS Northridge, and at Idaho.
Close Losses: Of the 19 losses this season, 10 have been by single digits (1 to Portland, 2 at CS Northridge, 3 at UC Riverside, 4 in ot at UC Davis, 4 to Pepperdine, 6 at Cal Poly, 6 vs. Georgetown, 7 at UCSB, 8 to Pacific, 9 at Hawaii).
Road Losing Skid Snapped: The road had not been kind to the 49ers, but on February 26 in Moscow, ID they won a road game, defeating Idaho 71-58. The win snapped an 18-game true road losing streak (not counting neutral site games). The previous true road win came on January 29, 2004 as the 49ers won at Idaho, 64-60, breaking a 22-game road losing skid. Over the past three years the 49ers are 2-40 in true road games and 1-1 at neutral sites.
Home Sweet Home: The 49ers finished at 8-5 at home this year, including winning its last six games in The Pyramid. Last year the 49ers were 5-8, in 2002-03 they were 5-8 and in 2001-02 7-7. The last time the 49ers had a winning home record was in 2000-01 when the Beach went 10-4 in The Pyramid. The six-game home win streak is the longest since 1999-00 when the 49ers won 11 consecutive home games.
Hodges On Three-Point Chart: Junior Jibril Hodges continues to move up the three-point chart at Long Beach State. Hodges was 3-8 on Thursday against Cal Poly and 5-9 on Saturday vs. UCSB. He has moved up to No. 2 all-time having connected on 162-439 three's. He moved past James Cotton and Rod Hannibal who both had 156 career three's. On the single season chart, he is No. 3 all-time with 71 made three's this year. The school-record is 79 set by Tony Darden in 2002-03.
Jibril Hodges: Junior Jibril Hodges (Park Forest, IL) has been very impressive for the 49ers, having hit double digits in scoring in 17 of the last 19 games, including four games with 20 or more points. Hodges knocked down a team-high 17 points in Saturday's win over UCSB and assisted on the game-winning shot by Kevin Houston. Hodges had a career-high tying 24 points in the win over UC Riverside on February 10. He also hit for 24 points in the 49ers 68-66 loss at CS Northridge on February 3. He knocked down a career-best six treys at CSUN (6-11), was 5-7 from long-range in the win over UC Riverside and hit 4-9 on Monday against Davis Hodges has raised his average from 9.1 points per game on December 29 to a team-best 12.8 points per game right now. Hodges, who has 20 double figure scoring games this year, has now eclipsed the 20-point mark five times this season as he also had 23 at UC Davis, 21 against Portland and 20 at CS Fullerton. He currently is averaging 12.8 points per game overall, but in league games that number stands at 13.6 ppg. He is second on the 49ers with 67 assists, leads the squad with 35 steals and is shooting .866 (58-67) at the free throw line.
Cody Pearson: Senior Cody Pearson (Sherman Oaks, CA) has been solid all year long, but in the month of February he has stepped up his game. In the eight February games Pearson averaged 8.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per game while shooting .591 (26-44) from the field. In Thursday's win over Cal Poly he finished with eight points and five rebounds and Saturday vs. UCSB, six points, seven rebounds and four assists. In the win over CS Fullerton he tallied 12 points and six rebounds and in the victory over UC Riverside he had nine points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals. Pearson has grabbed a season-high nine rebounds three times this year (UC Irvine, UC Davis, CS Northridge). Overall Pearson is averaging 6.4 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. He scored a career-high 14 points at CS Fullerton (1/13), and has started in 26 of the 29 games this season. Pearson has seven double-figure scoring games this year.
Kevin Houston: Sophomore Kevin Houston (Highland, CA) has stepped up his game the past eight outings for the 49ers. After not scoring in the loss at Pacific on February 5, Houston is averaging 11.9 points and 4.75 assists per game in his last eight games. He had scored in double digits in six consecutive games, including a career-high 18 points on Thursday vs. Cal Poly, before tallying six against UCSB. Toss in the fact that he is shooting .493 (36-73) from the field in that span and has committed just 19 turnovers (with 38 assists) in his last 242 minutes (8 games) of court time. In the win over UC Davis he had 15 points, four assists and just one turnover. In the overtime loss at UC Davis (1/22) he scored 16 points, adding nine assists and four rebounds in 36 minutes. First on the team with 94 assists (3.24 apg), Houston is averaging 6.9 points per game overall. Houston has raised his field goal percentage 43 points in the last eight games going from .384 (43-112) to .427 (79-185). In Big West games Houston averaged 7.2 points and 3.33 assists per game while dishing out 60 assists compared to 55 turnovers.
Chris Jenkins: Senior Chris Jenkins (Albuquerque, NM) has being playing some solid basketball recently for the 49ers. Jenkins finished with four points, two rebounds, three assists and two steals in 20 minutes against Cal Poly. He had seven points at Utah State and four points and a season-high four rebounds at Idaho. He scored 10 points in back-to-back games against Utah State and at CS Northridge earlier this season. Jenkins is averaging 5.6 points per game overall this year and is shooting a respectable .426 (26-61) from three-point range. His best outing of the season came on January 6 at home against Pacific as he had a season-high 15 points, hitting 3-5 shots from three-point range. He then came back against CS Northridge two nights later to score 10 points. Earlier this season against Portland he had 11 points. Four of his five double-figure scoring games this season have come in The Pyramid.
Shawn Hawkins: Junior Shawn Hawkins (Pittsburgh, PA) has broken out of a recent slump with seven strong games. Against Cal Poly he had 16 points and six rebounds, including four on the offensive glass. In his last seven outings Hawkins is averaging 12.0 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. In the overtime win over UC Davis he had 15 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals. In the win over CS Fullerton he had 15 points and eight rebounds and in the win over UC Irvine he had with 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists. Prior to the CS Fullerton game (2/12) he had averaged just 5.8 points per game in his previous four outings. Hawkins is averaging 11.6 points per game and 5.1 rebounds per contest this season, his first as a 49er. His 60 offensive rebounds leads the team. He is third on the squad with 43 assists. At UC Riverside (1/15) he earned his first double-double as a 49er with 15 points and a career-high 12 rebounds. Hawkins scored a career-high 24 points in the 49ers loss at Cal Poly on December 30, shooting 10-18 from the field and 4-7 from three-point range. He has scored in double figures 20 times this year, including five of his last seven.
Anthony Coleman: Senior Anthony Coleman (Carson, CA) played in his first game since December 23 on February 10 against UC Riverside, finishing with two points and one rebound in 13 minutes. He has steadily increased his minutes over the past three weeks. Thursday night vs. Cal Poly he had just two points, but added six rebounds and three blocks in 16 minutes. Saturday against UCSB he had six points and two assists in 25 minutes. Against CS Fullerton (2/12) he made his presence felt in just 14 minutes of action finishing with four points, seven rebounds and two blocks in the 49ers 66-63 win. Last Saturday night at Idaho he really had a confidence-building game as he finished with 12 points and a season-high nine rebounds in 26 minutes of playing time. Coleman played in eight of the first nine games this year before missing the next 12 due to severe soreness in his shins and calcium deposits in his left shin. Coleman only played in two games last year (2003-04) before having surgery on his shins. Coleman is now averaging 8.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. He tallied a career-best 26 points on Nov. 27 against Sacramento State.
Onye Ibekwe: Sophomore Onye Ibekwe (Carson, CA) has a strong game against UC Davis finishing with nine points, nine rebounds and two assists in 31 minutes. He was shutout at Utah State, the first time this season he has not scored a point, but he came back at Idaho to finish with eight points and six rebounds. Of his six boards, five were on the offensive glass. Ibekwe has a team-best 149 total rebounds this season and 52 of those are offensive. Ibekwe averaged 7.2 points and 6.5 rebounds per game in Big West games this year and stands at 6.4 points and 6.5 rebounds per game overall. In the win against Idaho (1/27) at The Pyramid he earned his second double-double of the year with 12 points and a career-high tying 11 rebounds. His first double-double came at home against CS Northridge (1/8) with 11 points and 10 rebounds. He has hit double figures in rebounding four times this year and scored a career-best 13 points at CS Fullerton (1/13), adding nine rebounds and two assists.
Sam Byrd: Junior Sam Byrd (Houston, TX) had an impressive game at Idaho as he played 14 minutes and finished with two points and five boards. Byrd also had a strong game at UC Davis (1/22), finishing with five points and a career-high nine rebounds in 20 minutes of action. Byrd, who leads the 49ers with 22 blocked shots, is averaging 2.5 points and 2.5 rebounds per game. One of his best games came against Pacific in The Pyramid where he had a career-high eight points and added two rebounds and a career-high two assists. He scored a seven points, and added four rebounds, in the game at UCLA.
Keion Kindred: Junior Keion Kindred (Los Angles, CA) played his first game since January 8 on February 17 against UC Irvine, seeing six minutes of action. At Idaho he came up big with two points, four rebounds and a steal in 17 minutes of action. He also played some outstanding defense, shutting down the Vandal's Anton Lyons after Lyons had scored 11 points in the first four minutes of the game. Kindred missed 10 games due to a combination of injury and academic issues. He has more assists (21) than turnovers (17) this season, and checks in at 0.6 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. Against Georgetown he had one of his better all-around games, finishing with a season-high five points while adding four rebounds and three assists. Kindred had five rebounds against Indiana State and a career-high five assists against LMU.
Louis Darby: Junior Louis Darby (Panorama City, CA) saw his first action in 15 games on February 17 when he played two minutes against UC Irvine. Thursday vs. Cal Poly he had eight points and three steals in 16 minutes, including two big dunks in the second half. Saturday against UCSB he had eight points, three rebounds and two blocks. Darby suffered a broken bone in his left foot against Georgetown (12/22), had surgery on December 27, and got the go-ahead to suit up in mid-February. Darby is currently averaging 6.4 points and 2.0 rebounds per game. He had a season-high 15 points in the opener at Charlotte and tallied 14 points and a season-high five rebounds in the win over Sacramento State. He scored in double digits in the first three games of the season, but had played just 12 games this year due to the injury.
Kevin Crockett: Redshirt freshman Kevin Crockett (Long Beach, CA) knocked down two three-pointers at Pacific finishing with a career-high six points in eight minutes. Crockett was 2-4 from three-point range and added one rebound and one steal. In the game at UC Irvine he played a career-best 12 minutes off the bench, finishing with three points, one rebound and one assist. |
