Long Beach State University Athletics
49ers Face Tennessee
3/11/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
49ers Take On Tennessee In NCAA's
Beach A #12 Seed In Columbus, Ohio
March 11, 2007
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OVERALL RECORD: 24-7 BIG WEST RECORD: 12-2 |
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PROBABLE STARTERS |
| LONG BEACH STATE (24-7 / 12-2 Big West) |
| F-15-Sterling Byrd (6-6, Sr., 13.9 ppg, 6.7 rpg) |
| C-44-Dominique Ricks (6-6, Sr., 7.3 ppg, 5.8 rpg) |
| G-1-Kejuan Johnson (6-4, Sr., 15.3 ppg, 4.1 rpg) |
| G-20-Kevin Houston (5-10, Sr., 11.7 ppg, 4.4 apg) |
| G-55-Aaron Nixon (6-2, Sr., 18.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg) |
| TENNESSEE (22-10 / 10-6 SEC) |
| F-4-Wayne Chism (6-9, Fr., 9.0 ppg, 5.4 rpg) |
| F-23-Dane Bradshaw (6-4, Sr., 5.6 ppg, 4.1 rpg) |
| G-5-Chris Lofton (6-2, Jr., 20.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg) |
| G-2-JaJuan Smith (6-2, Jr., 15.0 ppg, 4.5 rpg) |
| G-12-Ramar Smith (6-2, Fr., 10.4 ppg, 3.3 rpg) |
THE RECORDS
·49ers Win Big West Title; Head To NCAA's
Long Beach State won its first Big West Tournament Championship since 1995 this past weekend as they defeated UC Irvine (77-63) and Cal Poly (94-83) to capture the title. The 49ers are 24-7 on the season and will head to the NCAA Tournament. The tournament championship was the fourth in school history (1977, 1993, 1995, 2007). Long Beach State received a #12 seed in the San Antonio Bracket and will face #5 seed Tennessee on Friday in Columbus, Ohio. Tennessee is 22-10 on the year and was 10-6 in the SEC. In the other side of the bracker at #4 seed Virginia (20-10, 11-5 ACC) and Albany (23-9, 13-3 America East Conference). The number one seed in the San Antonio bracket is Ohio State (30-3). Tennessee is ranked #25 in the country in the latest AP Poll.
THE COACH
·27-8 Last Two-Plus Seasons In February And March
Larry Reynolds (UC Riverside, 1976) is 63-82 (.434) in his fifth year as the head coach at Long Beach State. Overall, Reynolds is 173-117 (.597) in his ninth year as a collegiate head coach. Since February 3, 2005, the 49ers are 27-8 (.771) in the months of February (17-6) and March (10-2). Reynolds was selected as the 2007 Big West Conference Coach of the Year.
THE SERIES
·49ers Have Never Played Tennessee
The 49ers have never played Tennessee or Virginia in men's basketball. They are 1-0 against Albany, defeating the Great Danes 83-45 on December 29, 1999 in Long Beach. Long Beach State is 1-5 all-time against the SEC (Auburn 0-1, Georgia 0-1, Mississippi 1-1, Mississippi State 0-1, Vanderbilt 0-1.
BEACH BEATS CAL POLY FOR TITLE
·MVP Nixon Leads Way With 29 Points, 11 Rebounds
Long Beach State won the Big West Tournament title as it downed UC Irvine 77-63 and Cal Poly 94-83. Against UCI, Sterling Byrd had 20 points and 12 rebounds and Aaron Nixon added 16 to lead the 49ers. Long Beach shot .532 (25-47) from the field for the game and out-rebounded UCI 31-24. Kevin Houston and Dominique Ricks each scored 11 points as the 49ers broke open a three-point game at the half (38-35) with a 12-2 run in the opening four minutes of the second half. In Saturday's title win, Nixon had 29 points and 11 boards, Kejuan Johnson had 24 and Houston 17 to lead Long Beach. The 49ers were 28-33 (.848) at the free throw line for the game and committed just seven turnovers. Mark Dawson had a huge game finishing with 12 points and 10 boards. He was named to the All-Tournament Team while Nixon was named tournament MVP.
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
·Eighth Appearance All-Time
This season's trip to the "Big Dance" will be the eighth in school history, and the first since 1995. Long Beach is 7-8 all-time in its seven appearances. The first came in 1970 where the 49ers defeated Weber State (92-73) in the first round, but fell to UCLA in the regional semifinal, 88-65. The 49ers fell in the regional consolation game (which is no longer played) falling to Santa Clara 89-86. In 1971 and 1972 the 49ers reached the NCAA West Regional Finals. In 1971 they fell to UCLA 57-55 in Salt Lake City, UT and in 1972 they fell to UCLA 73-57 in Provo, UT. The last time Long Beach made the tournament came in 1995 where they were a #13 seed in Boise, ID. The Beach fell to #4 seed Utah 76-64.
24-WIN SEASON
·24 Wins Tied For Third All-Time
The 49ers hit the magical 20-win mark with their win at Pacific on February 26. Long Beach is currently 24-7 on the season. The 24 wins represent just the 13th time in school history that a 49er men's basketball team has won at least 20 games. The last 20-win season was 1999-00 when the 49ers went 24-6. The school record for win is 26 (26-3), set by the 1972-73 squad. The 24 wins is tied for third all-time
ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS
·Nixon Named Player of the Year
The 49ers had four players earn all-conference honors this season, highlighted by Aaron Nixon being named the Big West Player of the Year. He is the ninth 49er to earn league Player of the Year honors, but the first since 2000 when Mate Milisa won the award. Nixon was joined on the Big West first team by Kejuan Johnson. Kevin Houston was named second team All-Big West and Sterling Byrd earned Honorable Mention accolades.
REYNOLDS NAMED COACH OF THE YEAR
·First 49er Coach Ever To Win Award
Head Coach Larry Reynolds was selected as the Big West Conference Coach of the Year after leading the 49ers to the league championship. he is the first 49er coach to win Coach of the Year honors since the award began in 1978. Pacific's Bob Thomason has won the award the past three years.
PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS
·Nixon Earns Award Five Times
Aaron Nixon was named the Big West Player of the Week five times during the season (Dec. 11, Jan. 7, Jan. 12, Feb. 12, Mar. 5). That ties for the most awards in a single season. During the 1997-98 season Pacific's Michael Olowokandi won the award five times.
OFFENSIVE NUMBERS
·49ers Hit 102 Points Vs. UC Davis
The 49ers hit 100 points for the first time this season on January 4 when they racked up 101 points in the win over UCSB. On February 24 the 49ers scored a season-best 102 points in the win over UC Davis. Last year the 49ers hit the century mark three times en route to averaging an NCAA-best 83.3 points per game. Long Beach has put up some impressive numbers in Big West Conference play. The 49ers led the league averaging 86.4 points per game in conference outings. The 49ers scored 90 or more points in six of their 14 league games and they hit 80 or more points 11 times. Overall the 49ers are averaging 80.3 points per game, a mark which ranks #-- in the nation.
THREE-POINT STREAK
·174 Games And Counting
The 49ers have connected on at least on three-pointer in every game Larry Reynolds has coached at Long Beach State (145 games). The 49ers have hit at least one three-pointer in 174 consecutive games, dating back to the 2001-02 season. The last time Long Beach State didn't hit a three in a game was in the 2001-02 season opener against Western Michigan (11/15/01) where The Beach was 0-9. Last year the 49ers finished 21st in the nation averaging 8.53 made three's per game. Their 256 three's in 2005-06 were a new school record, shattering the old mark of 200. This year the 49ers broke last year's mark by hitting 261 treys (8.42 per game).
MORE LONG-RANGE NOTES
·Shoot .524 vs. CS Fullerton
The 49ers shot well from beyond the three-point line in conference action. Long Beach shot .411 (144-350) from three-point range in Big West Conference games, tops in the league. Against CS Fullerton on January 18 the 49ers were 11-21 from long-range for a season-best .524 percentage. In the win over UCSB on January 4 the 49ers shot .515 (17-33) from beyond the arc. The 17 made three's tied a school-record. Long Beach has hit double digits in made three-pointers 13 times this season and all 13 of those efforts have come in the past 24 games. Overall the 49ers are shooting .369 (261-707) from three-point range on the year. Last year Long Beach connected on .355 (256-721) of its long-range attempts.
22 OF 25
·Beach Hot Since December
Since beginning the season at 2-4, including losses to nationally-ranked UCLA, Air Force and USC all away from home, the 49ers have won 22 of their last 25 games. Since losing at Temple on December 2, the 49ers rolled off a nine-game win streak, a five-game streak and are currently on a four-game winning streak. The 49ers are 9-2 in true road games since the loss at Temple and finished the year 9-5 on the road.
ON FIRE FROM THE FIELD
·Beach Shoots .565 Vs. Highlanders
Long Beach State has been on fire from the field recently. Prior to shooting .426 (29-68) vs. Cal Poly, the 49ers shot over .500 from the field in five consecutive games. In its last six outings the 49ers are shooting .540 (188-348) from the field. On Feb. 24 the 49ers shot a season-best .667 (42-63) in the win over UC Davis. At Pacific (2/26) the 49ers shot .519 (27-52), against UCI (3/1) the 49ers shot .536 (30-56), at UCR (3/3) Long Beach hit .565 (35-62) of its field goal attempts and against UCI (3/9) in the Big West Tournament the 49ers shot .532 (25-47). Nine times this season the 49ers have shot .500 or better from the field. Of the nine strong shooting performances, seven came against Big West Conference foes.
AT THE LINE
·Beach Shoots .717 In Big West
In its last six games the 49ers are shooting .765 (104-136) at the free throw line. In the win at Pacific the 49ers connected on .818 (18-22) of its charity tosses. Against Cal Poly in the Big West Tournament Championship game, Long Beach hit 28-of-33 (.848) charity tosses. The 49ers shot .717 at the free throw line in Big West games, a mark which ranked third in the league. Overall the 49ers are shooting .702.
SECOND HALF SCORING MACHINE
·49ers Averaged 47.3 Points In 2nd Half In League Games
The 49ers out-scored 13 of its 14 Big West opponents in the second half, including scoring 50 points in the second half in seven of the 14 league contests. Long Beach averaged 47.3 points per game in the second half in league outings, while giving up an average of 39.2 (+8.1).
WHAT A HALF!
·64 Second Half Points Vs. Cal Poly
The 49ers scored a season-best 64 points in the second half in Saturday's 94-83 win over Cal Poly in the championship game of the Big West Tournament. The 64 points in a half isn't a school record. The 49ers scored 74 points in the second half of a 127-57 win over Cal State Monterey Bay on December 22, 1999. The 49ers sealed the deal by shooting a season-high .848 (28-33) at the free throw line and in the final 2:19 of the contest the 49ers were 17-18 (.944).
TURNOVER MARGIN
·Fewer Turnovers Than Opponents
Through 31 games this season the 49ers have committed less turnovers than its opponent 22 times. The 49ers are 18-4 when they commit less turnovers than their opponent. Over the past 23 games the 49ers have had less turnovers than their opponents 19 times. On the year, the 49ers are averaging 13.9 turnovers per game while forcing 16.7 (+2.8).
SINGLE SEASON THREE'S
·49ers Have Hit 261
The 49ers have hit 261 three's this season, a new school record. They broke last year's mark of 256 treys. Individually, Aaron Nixon has hit 77 three's this year, a mark which ranks No. 3 on the 49er single season chart. Sterling Byrd's 57 three's is tied for No. 11 and Kejuan Johnson's 55 three's is tied for No. 13. The school-record for three's in a season was set last year by Jibril Hodges with 87.
EIGHT STRAIGHT IN LEAGUE
·49ers Finish At 12-2
The 49ers surpassed last year's Big West win total of nine with the win at Pacific on February 26. The 49ers finished 12-2 in the Big West. The last time the 49ers won double digits in conference games was in the 2000-01 season when the 49ers went 10-6 and finished in third place. Only two times in the previous 10 years has Long Beach hit double digits in conference wins. The 49ers also won eight consecutive league games. The last time that happened was in the 1999-00 season when LBSU went 15-1, winning the Western Division title. The 49ers began league action at 9-0, lost to Utah State, and then won their final six conference games.
NIXON ON SCORING CHART
·1,004 Career Points
Aaron Nixon has scored 578 points this season, a total which ranks #8 on the Long Beach State single season chart. In his two years at Long Beach State, Nixon has scored 1,004 points. He became the 16th player in school history to rack up 1,000 career points. He ranks #15 all-time on the career chart.
JOHNSON AT THE LINE
·Shooting .833 This Season
49er senior Kejuan Johnson is shooting .833 (80-96) at the free throw line this season, a mark which is tied for No. 2 all-time. The top percentage in a season belongs to John Rambo who shot .861 (130-151) at the line during the 1965-66 campaign. Overall, Johnson is shooting .822 (134-163) at the line in his two-year career. He would rank No. 1 in Long Beach State history if the record keeper would lower the minimum amount of attempts to qualify, which currently stands at 250 career attempts.
RICKS & BYRD DOUBLE UP
·Several Double-Doubles This Year
Senior Sterling Byrd has four double-doubles this season, while fellow senior Dominque Ricks has three. On February 8 at Cal Poly Ricks had 17 points (a season-high) and 12 rebounds. On February 1 vs. CS Northridge he had 13 points and 12 boards. His first double-double this season came on November 15 vs. San Jose State with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Byrd's first came on Nov. 28 at UCLA with 15 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. He had 19 points and 11 boards on Feb. 10 at UCSB and in the win at Pacific he had 16 points and 10 rebounds. His fourth came against UC Irvine in the Big West Tournament where he finished with 20 points and 12 rebounds.
NIXON GOES FOR 35
·Four 30-Plus Games In 49er Career
Senior Aaron Nixon has scored 30 or more points four times during his time at Long Beach State. This past Monday at Pacific he had 32 points, adding nine rebounds and six assists. He put up a career-high 35 points vs. UCSB on January 4. Last year at UC Davis (2/25) he scored 33 points and against CS Fullerton in the Big West Tournament quarterfinals he scored 31 points. The 35 point outing tied for 17th-best on the LBSU single game chart. The school-record for points in a game is 45, set by Ed Ratleff vs. Saint Mary's on December 10, 1970.
THREE TIMES IS A CHARM
·Nixon Has Three Game-Winners To Credit
49er senior guard Aaron Nixon has proven that when the game is on the line, get the ball in his hands. At UCSB, he hit the game-winning shot with four-tenth's of a second left as the 49ers won 68-67. On December 22, 2006 at Loyola Marymount, he hit a 35-footer at the buzzer lifting the 49ers to a 66-65 win. Nixon has knocked down two game-winning three-point shots at the buzzer to lift Long Beach State to victories. His first game-winner came on March 10, 2006 in the semi-finals of the Big West Tournament as he knocked down a three from the far corner lifting the 49ers to a 75-73 victory.
WIN STREAK
·Tenth-Best In History
The nine-game win streak the 49ers had earlier this season tied for 10th best in 49er history. The last time the 49ers won nine games in a row was during the 1989-90 campaign under Joe Harrington. The streak ran from Feb. 12 through March 10. The streak ended on March 11 with a 92-74 loss to UNLV in the Big West Tournament. The school-record streak is 19 games set during the 1969-70 season under Jerry Tarkanian.
DOWN THE STRETCH
·49ers Closing Out Games
The 49ers are 17-0 when leading at the half and 2-1 when tied at the half. But, when leading a game with five minutes remaining, the 49ers are a perfect 21-0. In six of their seven losses the 49ers were behind with five minutes remaining, with four of the deficits being in double digits. Against Air Force the game was tied 52-52 when the clock hit five minutes remaining.
HOUSTON RANKS NO. 4 ALL-TIME
·Moves Ahead Of Ed Ratleff
Senior point guard Kevin Houston has recorded a team-high 136 assists this season and stands No. 4 on the 49er career chart for assists with 420. Houston has set a single season personal-high for himself with those 136 assists this season. He garnered 98 assists in each of the past two seasons after distributing 88 as a freshman in 2003-04. Houston is #10 on the 49er single season Top 20 list with his 136 assists.
HOME COOKING
·Beach Finishes 12-1 At Home This Year
The 49ers finished 12-1 at home this season. Long Beach averaged 86.7 points per game at home. Since February of 2005, the 49ers are 27-5 (.844) at home. Overall in the Walter Pyramid, Long Beach State is 114-59 (.659). The 100th home win came on February 15, 2006 vs. CS Fullerton.
DOUBLING UP
·Six Players In Double Digits
In the win at UC Davis (12/28) the 49ers had six players hit for double digits, a season-high. January 20 vs. UC Riverside they did it again (Houston 17, Ricks 15, Nixon 14, Johnson 12, Dawson 11, Byrd 10). Last year the 49ers had one game where they had seven players tally double digits, and that was on February 18 at Manhattan (Hawkins 25, Houston 17, Johnson 16, Hodges 14, Darby 13, Nixon 11, Dawson 10).
ROAD WINS
·Nine True Road Wins This Year
The 57-53 win at Maryland-Baltimore County (Dec. 3) was the first "true" road win for the 49ers this year after they had dropped their first three on the road. The 49ers are 9-5 on the road, having won their last five games away from home (Cal Poly, UCSB, CS Fullerton, Pacific, UC Riverside). Last year the 49ers lost their first six road games before they downed Cal Poly 79-66 on January 9. Long Beach went 8-1 in true road games from January 9 through March 4 of last season, finishing 8-7 on the road and 2-1 at neutral sites (Big West Tournament).
DEFENSIVE STATS
·Opponents Shooting .438 From Field
Only five teams have shot .500 or better from the field against the 49ers this season. Hawai'i shot a season-best .560 (28-50) from the field against the 49ers on February 17. But, overall the 49ers have held six opponents below .400 and six more below .450. Overall, opponents are shooting just .438 from the field.
BIG WEST STATS
·Averaged 86.4 Points Per Game
In Big West Conference games the 49ers turned up its offense. Long Beach finished first in league games in scoring (86.4), scoring margin (+10.9), field goal percentage (.486), three-point field goal percentage (.411), three-point field goals made (10.29), and turnover margin (+3.14). They finished second in assists (15.29), and steals (7.57).
RICKS FROM THE FIELD
·Shooting .633
Senior Dominique Ricks has put up some impressive field goal percentage numbers this year. He is shooting .633 (95-150) overall from the field and he shot .741 (43-58) in Big West games. His .63 percentage ranks second on the Long Beach State single season chart. Ahead of him is Mike Atkinson (.695 in 1993-94). In his career, Ricks stands at .611 (149-244).
FALL SIGNEES
·49ers Sign Three
The 49ers signed three players in the early signing period in November. Signing with The Beach were: Brandon Johnson (F, 6-8, 210, Vancouver, WA, Lamar CC, Mountain View HS), Greg Russell (G, 5-6, 170, Santa Cruz, CA, West Valley JC, Santa Cruz HS) and Bryan Emanuel (G, 6-3, 185, Bellflower, CA, Mayfair HS).
STERLING BYRD (Honorable Mention All-Big West)
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging 13.9 points, 6.7 rebounds per game (14.8 ppg in BWC)
·Had 20 points and 12 rebounds in tourney win over UCI
·Averaged 12.0 points and 10.5 rebounds in Big West Tourney
·23 points, 7 rebounds and 4 steals at UC Riverside (5-6 three's)
·Had 16 points & 10 rebounds in win at Pacific (3rd double-double)
·14.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per game in league outings
·Had 17 points and 6 rebounds in win at CS Fullerton
·16 points and 4 rebounds against Hawaii (4-6 on three's)
·19 points and 11 rebounds at UCSB, plus 4 assists
·Hit double digits in scoring in 13 of last 15 games
·Scored 22 points in win over Pacific at home (3-6 three's)
·Scored a team-high 23 points vs. CSUN (9-11 ft's)
·Career-high 26 points vs. Pepperdine (10-13 fg's/3-5 3's)
·Named Big West Player of the Week on Dec. 26
·15 points and career-high 16 rebounds at UCLA
·Double figures in 25 of 31 games this season
·Second on the squad with 65 offensive rebounds
·Second on team with 57 made three's
LOUIS DARBY
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging 5.3 points and 2.5 rebounds per game
·Averaged 6.6 points per game in Big West games
·Had 3 rebounds and a career-high 4 assists at UC Riverside
·Strong outing vs. UCI with 10 points and 2 boards in 19 minutes
·Scored 9 points in 13 minutes vs. Hawaii (4-4 fg's)
·Had 6 points and 3 rebounds at CS Fullerton (20 min.)
·Had 8 points and 3 assists in win over Pacific
·Season-high tying 11 points at UC Irvine (4 rebs, 2 steals)
·Season-high 11 points in win over Manhattan (9-10 FT's)
·5 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists in win over CSUN
·9 points and 3 rebounds vs. UC Riverside (2 off. rebs.)
·Had 7 points, 2 rebounds and 2 steals vs. CS Fullerton
·Shooting .534 (47-88) from the field in last 19 games
·Had 8 points and 3 assists vs. Cal Poly
·Had 9 points in win over UCSB
·Had a season-best 6 rebounds in the win at San Jose State
·Had 7 points, plus 3 rebounds and 2 assists at USC
·Has played in 30 games, starting 7 times
MARK DAWSON (Big West All-Tournament Team)
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging 5.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game
·Averaged 9.0 points and 7.0 rebounds at Big West Tournament
·Vs. Cal Poly he had 12 points and 10 rebounds (1st double-double)
·Vs. UC Irvine he had 6 points and 4 rebounds in 11 minutes
·Had 7 points and 7 rebounds in 19 minutes at UC Riverside
·Tallied 5 points, 3 rebounds and 2 big blocks in win over UCI
·Tallied 6 points and 5 rebounds in win over UC Davis
·Had 10 points and 6 rebounds in win at CS Fullerton
·Had 5 rebounds and a block in 14 minutes at UCSB
·Career-high tying 16 points at UC Davis, adding five rebs.
·10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks at UC Irvine (4-6 fg's)
·11 points (5-7 fg's) and 6 rebounds vs. UC Riverside
·Had 11 points, 6 blocks, 26 minutes at UMBC
·Six blocks at UMBC tied prevoius career-high
·Season-high 7 rebounds vs. three opponents this season
·Shooting .559 (71-127) from the field
·Leads team with 29 blocked shots
·65 blocks in career, No. 7 all-time at LBSU
·Shooting .574 (136-237) in his career at LBSU
Andrew Fleming
2006-07 Notes
·Played in 11 games this season
·Averaging 0.6 points and 0.4 rebounds per game
·Had 2 points in 3 minutes vs. Pacific
·Scored first two points of career vs. Manhattan (12/30)
·Had 2 points and one block in 5 minutes vs. UCSB
·One point and career-high 2 rebounds in 5 minutes vs. UCR
·One offensive rebound in two minutes at USC
·Played three minutes at Temple with one rebound
·6 points and 3 rebounds vs. Chapman in exhibition
·Awarded a scholarship in the spring of 2006 after walking-on to the program the previous year
TRAVON FREE
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging 2.4 points and 1.3 rebounds per game
·Had 2 points in 4 minutes in win at Pacific (2/26)
·Scored 5 points in 4 minutes at CS Fullerton (2-3 fg's)
·Had 6 points (tied season-high) and 4 rebounds in a season-high 13 minutes vs. Pacific
·Had 4 points and one rebound in win over CSN
·8 minutes vs. CSN was first action since 9 minutes vs. Sacramento State (Dec. 9)
·Season-high 6 points, 6 rebounds and 9 minutes played at Temple (4 offensive rebounds)
·Had 4 points and 2 rebounds vs. Sacramento State
·Was 6-6 at free throw line at Temple
·Shooting .750 (9-12) at free throw line and .571 (12-21) from the field this season
·First game was against SJSU, his first action since 1/29/05
Artis Gant
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging 2.0 points and 1.3 rebounds per game
·Banked in a three-pointer at the buzzer in the first half vs. UC Irvine, giving the 49ers a 38-35 halftime lead
·Had 5 points and one assist in 13 minutes vs. Davis
·3 points, 1 assist and 1 steal at Cal Poly in a season-high tying 18 minutes of action
·3 points and 2 steals at UC Irvine
·Had 3 points, 2 assists and 2 rebounds vs. UCSB
·Career-high tying 4 assists, with one turnover, at LMU
·Had 4 points in 11 minutes vs. Sacramento State
·Season-high 6 points vs. Air Force
·Career-high 8 rebounds vs. CS Bakersfield, to go with 2 steals and 5 points
·Shooting .842 (16-19) from the free throw line
KEVIN HOUSTON (2nd Team All-Big West Conference)
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging 11.7 points, 2.9 rebs. and 4.4 assists per game
·Averaged 13.1 points and 4.5 assists in Big West games
·Ranks No. 4 all-time at LBSU with 420 assists
·Personal-best 136 assists this season (98 previous 2 years)
·136 assists is #10 on 49er single season chart
·17 points, 6 assists, 1 turnover vs. Cal Poly in championship game
·Averaged 14.0 points and 5.5 assists in the Big West Tournament
·Had 15 points and 7 assists in win at UC Riverside
·Scored 20 points in win over UCI (3-3 from 3-point range)
·Had 16 points and 6 assists (1 turnover) vs. UC Davis
·Had 9 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists at CS Fullerton
·Career-high 22 points and 8 rebounds at Cal Poly (5 asts.)
·14 points, 5 assists, 5 rebounds vs. Pacific (4-5 three's)
·15 points, 7 rebounds 5 steals in win over CSUN (the 7 boards and 5 steals represent career-high's)
·14 points, 6 assists, 0 turnovers vs. CS Fullerton at home
·Double figures in scoring in 20 of last 24 games
·Season-high 8 assists in win over San Jose State (11/15)
·3rd in Big West in assists (4.39) and 3rd in A/TO ratio (1.52)
TIM ISLAND
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging 2.7 points and 1.1 rebounds per game
·Had 8 points and 3 rebounds vs. Pacific (2-3 three's)
·Career-high 12 points at USC, hitting 4-8 three's
·Had 7 points and 3 rebounds at UCLA
·3 points and one rebounds in 11 min. vs. UCR
·Had 3 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal at CS Northridge
·Shooting .342 (13-38) from 3-point range
·5 points and season-best 5 rebounds at Temple
·4 points and 3 boards at UMBC
·Shooting .727 (8-11) at free throw line
KEJUAN JOHNSON (1st Team All-Big West Conference)
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging 15.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game
·Averaged 18.1 points in Big West games
·Shot .456 (31-68) on three's in Big West games
·Had 24 points and 6 assists vs. Cal Poly in championship game
·16 points and career-high tying 8 rebounds at UC Riverside
·11 points in a career-high 39 minutes of action in win at Pacific
·Had 19 points and 6 assists in win over UC Davis
·Tallied 19 points and 6 assists in win at CS Fullerton
·Had 22 points and 3 steals in win at UCSB (8-14 fg's)
·23 points and 3 assists at UC Irvine (5-8 on three's)
·20 points and 6 rebounds in win at home over CS Fullerton
·12 points, career-high 9 assists, 4 steals vs. UC Riverside
·Had 23 points at CS Northridge (4 assists, 3 steals)
·Career-high 26 points vs. Cal Poly at home (5-6 three's)
·Seven games with 20 or more points this year
·Had a streak of 19 straight games scoring in double digits
·Hit 23 consecutive free thows earlier in season
·Third on team with 91 assists, first in steals with 45
·Shooting .833 (80-96) at free throw line on the year
Arturas Lazdauskas
2006-07 Notes
·First eligible for the December 28 game at UC Davis
·Averaging 1.1 points and 0.9 rebounds per game
·Had a career-high 4 rebounds in 12 minutes vs. UC Davis
·Had 4 points and 2 assists in 14 minutes vs. Pacific
·Career-high 4 points and 3 rebounds vs. CS Fullerton
·3 points and 1 rebounds vs. UC Riverside
·Scored first collegiate points at CSUN (2 ft's)
·Played 7 minutes vs. UCSB with 1 rebound
·Had to sit out the fall due to eligibility issues regarding his transfer from a prep school
AARON NIXON (1st Team All-Big West Conference and Big West Tournament MVP
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging a team-best 18.6 points per game (4.9 rpg)
·Averaged 20.4 points and 4.9 rebounds in Big West games
·Named MVP of the Big West Tournament after averaging 22.5 points and 6.5 rebounds per game.
·Had 29 points and 11 rebounds in championship game vs. Cal Poly
·Has 1,004 career points to rank #15 all-time at Long Beach State
·His 578 points this season is tied for #8 on the single season chart
·Scored 20 of team-high 22 points in 2nd half in home win over UCI
·32 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists in win at Pacific on ESPN2
·Had 27 points and 4 rebounds in 28 min. vs. UC Davis
·Had 18 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals at CSUF
·26 points, 4 assists and career-high 7 steals at Cal Poly
·Hit game-winning shot at UCSB with 0.04 left
·Shooting .464 (32-69) from 3-point range in last 10 games
·Five-time Big West Conference Player of the Week
·27 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists vs. CS Fullerton
·Career-high 35 points vs. UCSB at home (7-9 on three's)
·Hit game-winning 3-pointer at buzzer at LMU (66-65)
·21 points, 6 rebounds and career-high 8 assists vs. Pepperdine
·Scored in double figures in 29 of the 31 games
·Has 4 games with 30 or more points in 49er career
·His 77 made three's this year ranks #3 on the 49er single season list
DOMINIQUE RICKS
2006-07 Notes
·Averaging 7.3 points and 5.8 rebounds per game while shooting .633 (95-150) from the field
·Averaged 7.3 points and 4.9 rebounds in Big West games
·Shot .741 (43-58) from field in league games
·Averaged 8.5 points in the Big West Tournament (7-9 fg's, .778)
·8 points and 6 rebounds in win at UC Riverside (4-5 fg's)
·9 rebounds, 8 points and career-high 6 steals vs. Hawaii
·Of his 9 rebounds vs. Hawaii, 6 were offensive
·Had 10 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists at CS Fullerton
·17 points and 12 rebounds at Cal Poly (3rd double-double)
·13 points and 12 rebounds in win over CSUN
·51-68 (.750) from field in last 16 games
·Had 9 points and 11 rebounds vs. Pepperdine (8 off. rebs.)
·Double-double vs. SJSU with 11 points and 10 rebounds
·Career-high 13 rebounds at USC
·Has started 30 of the 31 games this season
·Of his 179 total boards, 89 are offensive
·No. 1 in Big West in offensive rebounding (2.87 orpg)
·Career field goal percentage of .611 (149-244)
