Long Beach State University Athletics
Long Beach State University
13-14 (7-4)
Cal Poly
12-11 (5-6)
Hot Shooting Sends Cal Poly Past Long Beach State
2/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
San Luis Obispo, Calif. - Branford Jones had a good night in his return to the starting lineup, scoring 11 points with six assists, but the 49ers were unable to withstand a big night on the boards and from long range from Cal Poly, falling 71-58 on the road Saturday night.
Long Beach State (13-14, 7-4 Big West) found itself on a big disadvantage on the glass against the Mustangs, as Cal Poly (12-11, 5-6 Big West) won the rebounding battle 40-23. That edge led to extra shots for Cal Poly, who took advantage, making 12 3-pointers including four from Joel Awich, who led the Mustangs with 19 points.
With the Beach trailing by one in the first half at 10-9, Cal Poly opened up the game with a 17-4 run on the strength of three consecutive treys from Ridge Shipley. The Mustangs lead would grow to 15 with 5:09 left in the half, but Long Beach State was able to scramble back into the game, cutting the lead to three and going to the locker room down four at 36-32.
The Cal Poly lead ballooned back up to double-digits with an 8-2 run to start the second half, but Long Beach State had one more push in them. A three-point play by Mike Caffey cut the Mustang lead to four, and the Beach pulled in front at 50-49 with a Tyler Lamb 3-pointer with 9:24 to play.
Cal Poly answered with the long ball once more, with Reese Morgan hitting from range on back-to-back trips to put the Mustangs on top by five once more, and Long Beach State never got any closer the rest of the way.
David Samuels finished in double-figures with 10 points, and led the 49ers with five rebounds, while Temidayo Yussuf and Caffey each had eight points for the Beach.
Long Beach State returns to the friendly confines of the Walter Pyramid for its only game next week, as the 49ers play host to league-leading UC Davis on ESPN3.
