49ers Hit The Road For Two
Beach Plays at Fullerton on Thursday
January 16, 2006
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OVERALL RECORD: 7-8 / BIG WEST RECORD: 2-2 | Thursday, January 19 at CS Fullerton, 7 pm
Titan Gym, Fullerton, CA
Internet Radio: www.longbeachstate.com | Saturday, January 21 at UC Riverside, 5 pm
Student Rec Center, Riverside, CA
Television: Live on FOX Sports West 2
Internet Radio: www.longbeachstate.com |
PROBABLE STARTERS | | LONG BEACH STATE (7-8 / 2-2) | | F-3-Shawn Hawkins (6-6, 225, Sr., 11.5 ppg, 6.1 rpg) | | F-55-Aaron Nixon (6-1, 218, Jr., 12.8 ppg, 4.0 rpg) | | C-21-Mark Dawson (6-9, 203, Jr., 4.0 ppg, 3.3 rpg) | | G-1-Jibril Hodges (6-2, 175, Sr., 13.5 ppg, 1.4 rpg) | | G-30-Kejuan Johnson (6-3, 185, Jr., 10.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg) | | | | CAL STATE FULLERTON (9-5 / 3-2) | | F-1-Jamaal Brown (6-7, 235, Sr., 17.1 ppg, 8.9 rpg) | | F-5-Justin Burns (6-7, 205, Jr., 8.5 ppg, 6.3 rpg) | | G-3-Bobby Brown (6-1, 170, Jr., 19.3 ppg, 3.9 apg) | | G-14-Jermaine Harper (6-3, 170, Sr., 7.9 ppg, 2.0 rpg) | | G-23-Vershan Cottrell (6-2, 195, Sr., 5.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg) | | | | UC RIVERSIDE (2-13 / 2-3) | | F-30-David Misko (6-10, 225, Sr., 4.2 ppg, 3.1 rpg) | | G-33-Christian Soto (6-8, 220, Fr., 2.4 ppg, 2.9 rpg) | | G-20-Rickey Porter (6-3, 180, Sr., 16.1 ppg, 2.9 rpg) | | G-21-Dedrick Bates (6-0, 177, Jr., 7.8 ppg, 4.5 rpg) | | G-32-Larry Cunningham (6-2, 190, So., 10.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg) |
THE RECORDS
•Beach looking for second road win
•Saturday's game televised live on FOX Sports West 2
Long Beach State is 7-8 overall and 2-2 in the Big West Conference. Last weekend the 49ers lost at home to Pacific (78-72) and defeated Cal State Northridge (84-73). The 49ers picked up their first road win of the season last Monday at Cal Poly (79-66) and are looking for their second when they hit the road this week playing at Cal State Fullerton on Thursday and UC Riverside on Saturday. CS Fullerton is 9-5 overall and 3-2 in the Big West. The Titans defeated UC Riverside on the road last Saturday, 90-79. UC Riverside is 2-13 overall and 2-3 in the Big West after losing at home to Fullerton. Saturday's game at UCR will be televised live on FOX Sports West 2.
THE COACH
•Larry Reynolds in his fourth year at LBSU
Larry Reynolds (UC Riverside, 1976) is 28-71 (.283) in three years as the head coach at Long Beach State. Overall, Reynolds is 138-106 (.566) in his ninth year as a head coach.
THE SERIES
•49ers lead series with Titans, 52-36
•49ers lead series with Highlanders, 17-6
The 49ers lead their series with Cal State Fullerton by a 52-36 margin. The two teams split their series last year with Fullerton winning at Titan Gym 88-71 and the 49ers winning in the Walter Pyramid 66-63. Long Beach has lost four of the last six meetings with the Titans and have lost three straight at Titan Gym. The 49ers lead their series with UC Riverside by a 17-6 margin. The two teams split last year with UCR winning at home 68-65 and the 49ers prevailing at home 58-56. The 58-56 win snapped a five-game losing skid to the Highlanders.
CS FULLERTON FACTS
•Titans are 1-1 at home in Big West play
CS Fullerton is 9-5 overall and 3-2 in the Big West Conference. In Saturday's 90-79 win at UC Riverside, all five starters scored in double digits. Jamaal Brown led the way with 18 points and Bobby Brown and Justin Burns both added 17. Fullerton shot .542 (32-59) from the field for the game. On the year Bobby Brown leads the Titans in scoring at 19.3 points per game. He also leads the team with 55 assists (3.9 apg). Jamaal Brown is averaging 17.1 points and 8.9 rebounds per game. Frank Robinson is the third Titan in double digits at 10.9 points per game. Fullerton is averaging 78.6 points per game and shooting .456 from the field. Titan opponents are averaging 73.6 points and shooting .438. The Titans are 1-1 at home this year in Big West play, losing to Cal Poly (83-70) and defeating UCSB (73-59).
UC RIVERSIDE FACTS
•Highlanders are 2-3 in Big West
After losing its first 10 games of the season, UC Riverside has rebounded to a 2-3 mark in Big West play with wins over Pacific and UCSB. The Highlanders, 2-13 overall, lost at home to CS Fullerton on Saturday, 90-79. In that game Rickey Porter led the way with 21 points while Dedrick Bates added 20. On the year Porter leads the way, averaging 16.1 points per game. Sophomore Larry Cunningham is the only other UCR player in double digits at 10.5 points per game. UCR is averaging 69.8 points per game and shooting .399 from the field. UCR opponents are averaging 82.4 points per game and shooting .505 from the field.
49ERS AVERAGING 81.3 PPG
•77.2 points per game in Big West play
The 49er offense has put up some impressive numbers this year. The Beach is averaging a Big West-leading 81.3 points per game. In the latest NCAA stats (1/9), the 49ers ranked No. 15 in the nation in scoring. In Big West Conference outings the 49ers are averaging 77.2 points per game. Long Beach has scored 80 or more points seven times this season and have topped 70 points in 13 of their 15 games. Last year the 49ers averaged just 60.7 points per game. Long Beach scored a season-high 108 points when they defeated San Francisco State 108-51 on November 27. The 108 points was the most since The Beach put up 127 points on December 22, 1999 in a 127-57 rout of CS Monterey Bay.
LONG RANGE SHOOTING
•8.57 made three's per game
The 49ers are shooting .364 (127-349) from three-point range this season, averaging 8.47 made three's per game. Since hitting 10-of-19 (.526) treys in the win over UC Davis (1/2), the 49ers are shooting just .286 (28-98) from three-point range in its last four games. The school record for made three's in a game is 13, set earlier this season at Portland. The 49ers have hit double digits in made three's in seven of their 15 games. December 3 at Portland the 49ers were 13-21 (.619) from long-range, a season-high for makes and percentage. Long Beach is creeping up on the school-record for made three's which is 200 set in the 1992-93 campaign. Currently, the 49ers have connected on 127 three's this year. Last year the 49ers shot just .318 (159-500) from long-range, averaging 5.3 made three's per outing.
BALANCED SCORING
•Five players in double digits
Averaging 81.3 points per game overall, the 49ers have five players who are averaging in double digits. Jibril Hodges (13.5), Aaron Nixon (12.8), Shawn Hawkins (11.5), Kejuan Johnson (10.9) and Kevin Houston (10.1) are all above the magical double digit line this season.
STRONG FIRST HALF
•Beach led CSUN at the half by 18 points
In its previous seven games, the 49ers out-scored five of its opponents in the second half after a not-so-great first half. That flipped on Sunday in the 84-73 win over CS Northridge. The 49ers played one of its best first halves of the season. Long Beach led CSUN 49-31 at the half, shooting .500 (17-34) from the field, .545 (6-11) from three-point range and 1.000 (9-9) at the free throw line. The 49ers have led at the half just six times this season (4-2). In its previous seven outings the 49ers were averaging just 31.1 points per half and shooting .388 (80-206) from the field. In those seven second halves, the 49ers averaged 47.1 points per game and shot .551 (113-205) from the field.
FREE THROW SHOOTING NEEDS TO IMPROVE
•Shooting .693 in Big West games
In order to move up the standings the 49ers need to improve at the free throw line. In its first three Big West Conference games the 49ers were just 36-58 (.621) at the charity stripe. In Sunday's win over CS Northridge the 49ers were 25-30 (.833), including a 9-9 performance in the first half and a 9-10 showing in the final 1:09 of the contest. That raised the 49ers Big West percentage to .693 (61-88). Overall this year the 49ers are shooting .681 (261-383) from the line. Jibril Hodges stands at .865 (32-37) and Dominique Ricks is at .789 (15-19). They are the only two players above .760 at the line.
SEASON LOW 11 TURNOVERS
•14 assists, 11 turnovers vs. Pacific
•Back-to-back games with more assists than turnovers
For the first time this year the 49ers have recorded back-to-back games with more assists than turnovers. Despite losing to Pacific on Friday the 49ers had a season-low 11 turnovers, compared to 14 assists. In Sunday's win over CSUN, LBSU had 15 assists and 14 turnovers. Six times this year the 49ers have registered more assists than turnovers. The previous low for turnovers this season was 12, against both UMBC and UC Davis. Since committing 22 turnovers at UCSB (1/7), the second-most this season, the 49ers are averaging just 13.7 turnovers in their last three games.
FORCING TURNOVERS
•Opponents averaging 16.7 per outing
49er opponents are averaging more turnovers per game (16.7) this season than the 49ers (16.1). In the last six games, opponents have had more turnovers than assists four times. Sunday, CS Northridge had 10 assists compared to 21 turnovers. In the first nine games of the year 49er opponents had more assists than turnovers seven times. Through four Big West Conference games the 49ers are forcing 18.25 turnovers per game.
NO. 1 vs. NO. 2
•Thursday's game features the top two scoring teams
Thursday night's game between the 49ers and the Titans features the top two scoring teams in the Big West Conference. Long Beach is first at 81.3 points per game and the Titans are second at 78.6. The 49ers have scored 80 or more points seven times this year while Fullerton has topped 80 points six times.
LAST YEAR vs. THE TITANS
•49ers split with the Titans
Last season the 49ers and Titans each won on its home court. At Fullerton, the Titans prevailed 88-71 as all five starters scored in double digits. Yaphett King tallied 20 points, Jamaal Brown 18 and Bobby Brown had 11 points and 12 assists. Fullerton shot .582 (39-67) from the field for the game. Jibril Hodges led the 49ers with 20 points and Cody Pearson added 14. At the Walter Pyramid, the 49ers defeated the Titans 66-63 as Shawn Hawkins had 15 points and Hodges 14. LBSU trailed 29-24 at the half, but out-scored the Titans 42-34 in the second half. LBSU was 19-26 at the free throw line for the game and out-rebounded CSUF 41-36.
LAST YEAR vs. THE HIGHLANDERS
•49ers split with the Highlanders
The two teams split their series last season with each winning on its home court. UCR won 68-65 in Riverside as Klaus Schille led the way with 17 points and six rebounds. The 49ers, who shot just .375 (24-64) from the field, were led by Shawn Hawkins' 15 points and 12 rebounds. Jibril Hodges added 12 points. In Long Beach the 49ers rallied for a 58-56 victory. Hodges poured in a career-high 24 points, hitting five-of-seven three's in the contest. Chris Jenkins and Cody Pearson both scored nine points. The 49ers forced 22 UCR turnovers, but were out-rebounded 39-27. Steve Williams led UCR with 17 points and 16 rebounds.
ON THE ROAD
•Beach 1-6 away from Walter Pyramid
The 49ers have had their problems on the road, but are riding a one-game winning streak after winning at Cal Poly (79-66) in its last road contest. Overall the 49ers are 1-6 away from the Walter Pyramid this season. Last year the 49ers were 2-15 on the road (1-13 true road games, 1-2 at neutral sites). Over the past three-plus years the 49ers are just 4-48 away from home (3-45 true road games, 1-3 at neutral sites).
#1-JIBRIL HODGES
•15th 49er to eclipse 1,000 career points (1,022)
•Needs 6 more three's to break school-record
It came just 24 seconds into Friday's game against Pacific. Jibril Hodges hit his first shot of the game giving him 1,000 career points. He is just the 15th player in school history to surpass that plateau, and he joins his father, Craig, on that short list. The elder Hodges ranks No. 5 all-time with 1,476 points. Jibril currently stands at No. 13 all-time with 1,022 points. Hodges leads the 49ers in scoring at 13.5 points per game and has hit in double digits 11 times this season. After being held to single digits in the previous two games, Hodges exploded vs. CS Northridge for 19 points, 14 in the first six minutes of the game. Hodges is shooting .383 (41-107) from three-point range this year. He came off the bench against UMBC to score a season-high 20 points, hitting four-of-seven shots from three-point range in his 25 minutes of action. Hodges has hit at least one three-pointer in each game this season, knocking down a season-high five three's (5-11) at Sacramento State and at UCSB (5-13). Hodges is currently second on the 49er career chart in three-pointers made (206) and three-pointers attempted (554). He needs just six more three's to pass Lucious Harris' (1989-93) career mark of 211 made three's.
#3-SHAWN HAWKINS
•Career-high tying 24 points vs. UC Davis
•10 points in last two games
Hawkins had averaged 17.0 points per game in his previous three games but has been held to just 10 points in his last two outings. Hawkins is averaging 11.5 points per game and has hit in double digits nine times. He is the 49ers leading rebounder at 6.1 boards per game and is shooting 21-56 (.375) from three-point range. Hawkins picked up his second double-double of the year at Cal Poly (1/9) finishing with 15 points and 11 rebounds in the 49ers win. His first double-double came against UC Davis (1/2) finishing with 24 points and 11 rebounds. The 24 points ties his career-high which he set last year at Cal Poly. Hawkins was 9-of-11 from the field against the Aggies and three-of-four from three-point range. He had a stellar game in the win over UMBC, finishing with 17 points and four rebounds. Hawkins was 6-6 from the field and 3-3 from three-point range. He has hit double digits in scoring nine times this year, tallying 19 points against both LMU and Portland. At Portland he also added six rebounds, five assists and two steals and was 4-5 from three-point range. Against LMU he finished with 19 points and eight rebounds in the 49ers home win over the Lions.
#30-KEJUAN JOHNSON
•12.3 points and 5.7 rebounds in 3 games last week
•15 points, 6 rebounds vs. Pacific
Johnson continues to display a strong all-around game for the 49ers. Friday night against Pacific he had 15 points, six rebounds and three assists. In Sunday's win over CS Northridge he had eight points, five assists, four steals and three rebounds with just one turnover. At Cal Poly he finished with 14 points, three steals and a career-high eight rebounds. He scored 10 of the 49ers first 12 points to start the second half and help rally LBSU from a nine-point deficit. In the three games last week he averaged 12.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. Overall, Johnson is averaging 10.9 points and 3.6 rebounds per game while shooting .500 (30-60) from the field. In Big West Conference games Johnson is averaging 10.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 3.25 assists per outing. He had 11 points, four rebounds and four assists in the win over UMBC and scored a season-best 17 points in his first game at Pepperdine. He has scored in double figures in five of the eight games he has played. Johnson became eligible on December 13 after his appeal to the NCAA to grant eligibility came through.
#55-AARON NIXON
•Career-high 22 points vs. CS Northridge
•16.5 ppg in last four outings
Nixon, who celebrated his 22nd birthday on January 14, is averaging 12.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game for the 49ers. Friday vs. Pacific he scored a team-high 17 points, adding four assists and three rebounds. In Sunday's victory over CS Northridge he scored a career-high 22 points, adding five rebounds and three assists. In the win at Cal Poly he took over in the second half to help lead the 49ers to victory. He scored 12 of his 15 points in the second half to rally the 49ers from a nine-point deficit. He was five-of-six at the free throw line and converted three three-point plays in the second half alone. In his last four games Nixon is averaging 16.5 points, 3.75 rebounds and 3.75 assists per game. He is second on the team with his 39 assists. Nixon has hit double digits in scoring 12 times this season.
#21-MARK DAWSON
•Career-high 10 points vs. Pacific
•12-14 from field in last four games
Dawson keeps improving with each game and is making great strides for the 49ers, giving the team a presence in the post. Friday night he had a career-high 10 points and added five rebounds against Pacific. In the win over Cal Poly he had eight points and four rebounds and against UCSB he had five points and four boards. In Big West games Dawson is averaging 6.3 points and 3.8 rebounds per game while shooting .857 (12-14) from the field. He had connected on 11 consecutive field goal attempts before missing his first shot on Sunday vs. CS Northridge. Overall he is averaging 4.0 points and 3.3 rebounds per game while shooting .690 (29-42) from the field. In the win over Cornell he finished with eight points, two rebounds and a blocked shot. Dawson has scored eight points three times this season (Cal Poly, Cornell, Pepperdine). In the Pepperdine game he grabbed a career-high nine rebounds. Dawson leads the team with 14 blocked shots this year, including three against San Francisco State.
#20-KEVIN HOUSTON
•Leads team with 48 assists
•8 points, 5 assists and 3 steals in win at Cal Poly
Houston had a strong all-around game in the 49ers win at Cal Poly on January 9. He finished with eight points, five rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks shots in 31 minutes. He also had just one turnover in the game. Friday night against Pacific he tallied eight points and four assists. Houston leads the 49ers with 48 assists (3.20 apg) and has committed 37 turnovers. He is averaging 10.1 points per game and shooting .495 (53-107) from the field. In the win over Cornell, he had 12 points, five assists, four steals and just one turnover. He was six-of-six at the free throw line in the final 1:09 of the contest. In his last six games he has 22 assists and just eight turnovers. Houston, who has scored in double figures in eight of the 15 games, tallied a season-high 17 points at Pepperdine, adding two assists and two rebounds. He was three-of-four from three-point range in the contest as well. Houston had 16 points and four rebounds against San Jose State and 16 points and three assists in the win over Loyola Marymount.
#2-LOUIS DARBY
•Season-high 10 points against Cal Poly and CS Northridge
•Averaging 7.6 points in last five games
Louis Darby is starting to find his rhythm for the 49ers. In the last five games he is averaging 7.6 points per game. Sunday he had a season-high tying 10 points in the win over CS Northridge. He had 10 points at Cal Poly on January 9, hitting five-of-seven shots from the field. At UCSB he tallied seven points, as he did against UC Davis. In the last five games he is shooting .583 (14-24) from the field. Darby is currently averaging 4.4 points and 1.4 rebounds per game overall, but in Big West game his scoring numbers jump to 7.8 points per outing. In the first nine games of the year (before not playing vs. Cornell), Darby had a total of 24 points. In the last five games he has scored 38 points.
#44-DOMINIQUE RICKS
•12 points and 5 rebounds vs. CS Northridge
•32 offensive rebounds
Ricks had a stellar game on Sunday against CS Northridge finishing with 12 points and five rebounds in 13 minutes. Of his five boards, four were offensive and he hit six-of-seven shots from the field. The double-digit scoring effort was his second of the year. He scored a career-high 18 points, while grabbing 10 rebounds, at Sacramento State on December 5. Prior to the CSUN game, Ricks had scored just six points in his previous three games and grabbed just three rebounds. For the year he is averaging 5.3 points and 3.9 rebounds per game while shooting .640 (32-50) from the field and .789 (15-19) at the free throw line. He had a big game at Cal earlier this season finishing with nine points and nine rebounds. Of his 59 total rebounds this year (second-most on the squad), 32 have come on the offensive glass.
#4-JAZZ HENDERSON
•Career-high 23 points at Sacramento State
•Third on team with 22 assists
Henderson played some great defense on Sunday against the Big West's leading scorer Mike Efevberha, helping limit him to just 10 points. Henderson played 12 minutes, finishing with two points, two rebounds and two assists. He had a big game at Sacramento State on December 5 where he scored a career-high 23 points, adding two rebounds and two assists in just 20 minutes of action. Henderson scored nine of the 49ers first 16 points of the second half, staking the 49ers to a 65-60 lead. He was 8-13 from the field and hit his first three-pointer of the season. In the win over UMBC he finished with seven points and a career-high four assists. Henderson is tied for third on the team with 22 assists and is averaging 5.0 points per game on the season while shooting .750 (24-32) at the free throw line.
#15-STERLING BYRD
•Career-high 13 points vs. SFSU
•14-32 from three-point range
Byrd played just five minutes against Pacific but registered two points, a steal and one offensive rebound. In the win over UC Davis he finished with six points and two rebounds. Byrd scored a season-high 13 points in the win over San Francisco State and followed that with 12 points in the win over LMU. He grabbed a season-high five rebounds in both games as well. Against LMU he was 4-4 from three-point range in the 93-85 triumph. Overall Byrd is averaging 3.9 points and 1.9 rebounds per game. Byrd is shooting .438 (14-32) from three-point range this year.
#0-ONYE IBEKWE
•Season-high 12 points and 7 rebounds in win over Cornell
•6 points and 9 rebounds vs. CS Northridge
Ibekwe had a big game on Sunday vs. CS Northridge, finishing with six points and nine rebounds in 15 minutes of action. Of his season-high nine rebounds, four were on the offensive glass. He also was a perfect 4-4 at the free throw line. He had an outstanding game in the win over Cornell finishing with 12 points and seven rebounds. Four of his rebounds came on the offensive glass and he was 4-5 from the free throw line. Against UC Davis he finished with five rebounds in six minutes. In the win over LMU he had nine points and seven rebounds in 13 minutes of action. Ibekwe was 7-11 at the free throw line against LMU. Ibekwe is currently averaging 4.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game and is shooting .516 (16-31) from the field and .511 (23-45) at the free throw line.
#11-ARTIS GANT
•Career-high 10 points vs. SFSU
•4-4 from 3-point range thus far
Gant started against Cornell, finishing with two points and two assists in 12 minutes of action. He had his first double-digit scoring game as a collegian when he tallied 10 points against San Francisco State. Gant also added a career-best four assists in 19 minutes of action. Against LMU he did not score in 13 minutes, but finished with two assists and a steal while playing outstanding defense. In the opener at UNLV he had five points, one assist and one steal in 11 minutes. Gant is averaging 1.7 points and 0.83 assists per game is a perfect 4-4 from three-point range. He is the lone freshman scholarship player this year out of Pasadena High School.
#32-DOMINIC FREEMAN
•Started three games this year (UNLV, Cal, Cornell)
•5 points and 2 rebounds at UNLV
Freeman, who had not played in the previous two games for the 49ers, started against Cornell. He played four minutes in the contest, garnering one offensive rebound. Freeman had three rebounds at Sacramento State in 11 minutes of action and is averaging 1.4 boards per game, along with 1.0 points per outing. His best game of the season was a three-point, three-rebound game vs. San Francisco State. In the UNLV game he had a strong opening game with five points, two rebounds and an assist in 10 minutes. At Cal he played just seven minutes, finishing with one rebound and one assist. Of his 11 total rebounds this season, six are offensive.
#35-ULRIC PATTILLO
•3 points against UC Davis
•Season-high 6 minutes of action vs. SFSU
Pattillo has played in three games this season (UNLV, SFSU, UC Davis). Monday night he played two minutes against the Aggies and knocked down a three-pointer, his first of the season in three attempts. He played a season-high six minutes against San Francisco State finishing with two points, three rebounds and one assist. The three rebounds represents a career-high for him. Played two minutes at UNLV, taking one three-pointer and missing it. A walk-on, Pattillo played in 11 games in 2003-04, scoring six points and grabbing two rebounds, but sat out last year due to academic conflicts with his major (computer engineering).
#24-BRICE GALLOW
•Saw first action of season vs. SFSU
Has played in three games (SFSU, Sacramento State, UC Davis). Played two minutes on Monday against the Aggies, grabbing one rebound. Was on the court for four minutes vs. San Francisco State and played 30 seconds at Sacramento State. Is yet to score or take a shot this season. Gallow is a walk-on out of Redondo Union High School. Gallow went through the fall "try-out" session and the coaches liked what they saw and offered him a spot on the team. His best statistical year as a prep came as a junior when he averaged 15 points and three assists per game. | 49ER CAREER 3-POINT LEADERS | | 1. Lucious Harris (1989-93), 211-583 | | 2. Jibril Hodges (2002-Present), 206-554 |
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