Long Beach State University Athletics
Long Beach State Closes Homestand With Black And Blue Rivalry
2/6/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Long Beach, Calif. -
Complete Long Beach State Game Notes 
Game: Long Beach State vs. UC Irvine
Date: Saturday, February 7, 2015
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Location: Long Beach, Calif.
Arena: Walter Pyramid (4,200)
TV: ESPN3
TV Talent: Trent Schlom, Richie Scheuler
Radio: KBEACH.org; HD 88.1-3
Radio Talent: Rob Brender
Webcast: bigwest.org/tv
Live Stats: longbeachstate.com
RIGHT AWAY
• Long Beach State will try to hold even at the top of the Big West standings on Saturday, but will have a tough test as defending champion UC Irvine comes to the Walter Pyramid in latest edition of the Black and Blue Rivalry.
• Senior Mike Caffey leads the 49ers in 2014-15, averaging 17.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game. The senior was named to the Lou Henson Award midseason watch list, given to the top mid-major player in the country, and Caffey is also among the front-runners for the Big West Player of the Year. Caffey ranks second in scoring in the Big West, and is fifth in assists while gunning for a third first-team All-Big West selection.
• David Samuels has had an outstanding start to Big West play. The senior set a career high with 22 points against Cal State Fullerton, one game after making a career high 16 rebounds. In eight games, Samuels has a trio of double-doubles and has reached double-figures in rebounding five times. The senior is second in the conference in rebounding in league, and is averaging a double-double in league play at 12.5 points and 10. 8 rebounds per game.
• Long Beach State is using a rotation of 11 players in 2014-15, and has seen 10 of them reach double-figures this season. Mike Caffey has hit double-digits in all but three games this season, and has been joined in that club this season by Tyler Lamb, David Samuels, McKay LaSalle, Branford Jones, Eric McKnight, Travis Hammonds and three freshmen in Deontae North, Jack Williams and Temidayo Yussuf.
• The Walter Pyramid is once again becoming a very tough place to visit. The 49ers are now 8-0 at home this season, and have won 11 straight games on their home court. Since 2010-11, the Beach is 51-9 in the Walter Pyramid and have gone 33-2 in Big West action at home.
THE PLAYERS
• Tyler Lamb returned to the starting lineup after missing the first two games, and had a great start, scoring 17 points with three rebounds and two blocks. Lamb is averaging 8.8 points and 3.8 rebounds per game in 2014-15 with the 49ers, third in scoring and in rebounding on the season. The senior is also 77 points away from reaching 1,000 points combined at UCLA and Long Beach State.
• Forward David Samuels has started each game in his senior season after starting 29 games for the Beach as a junior college transfer last season. Samuels has seven double-doubles with the Beach, and is averaging 9.8 points and 7.0 rebounds per game this season, leading the team in rebounding and sitting second in scoring.
• Branford Jones has adjusted to a number of roles this season, averaging 7.3 points per game. The sophomore has saved his best for some of the 49ers' biggest games, leading the team in scoring with 14 points against Kansas State and scoring 13 points in LBSU's win over Xavier. Jones also led the team in scoring at No. 5 Louisville. In his latest return to the starting lineup, Jones has scored in double-figures against both Fresno Pacific and UC Irvine.
• Mike Caffey had a monster game at Cal State Fullerton, scoring 34 points in an overtime win Thursday. Caffey was the 10th player under Monson to score 30 points in a game, and the first since Casper Ware's legendary 33 point game in the Big West Championship game. Caffey also passed 1,500 points in his career in the process, becoming the 8th player in school history to reach the milestone. Caffey now ranks sixth in career scoring at the Beach.
THIS AND THAT
• Long Beach State closed out the non-conference with the nation's most difficult schedule out of 351 Division I teams, as rated by kenpom.com. The schedule also rated as the No. 3 schedule as rated solely by opponent winning percentage entering league play. Over the last six seasons, the 49ers have ranked non lower than sixth in strength of schedule, and have had the toughest schedule twice.
• Long Beach State is scheduled for as many as 23 national broadcasts this season - Over 70% of the team's games even before the Big West Tournament. The program has 22 guaranteed games this season, breaking last season's record of 21, as the Beach continues to gain additional exposure.
• Now with 132 wins at LBSU, Dan Monson recorded win No. 123 at Long Beach State in a 73-70 win over Xavier and passed Basketball Hall of Famer Jerry Tarkanian for the most as the head coach of the 49ers. Monson received a contract extension this offseason, and is committed to the Beach through the 2018-19 season. Monson also hit another milestone victory against Cal State Fullerton this season, No. 300 in his 18-year career as a head coach spanning time at Gonzaga and Minnesota.
• Long Beach State's "Super Beach Bros" promotion for Saturday's game received national attention, getting picked up by Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Sporting News, Fox, NBC, and others. View the video online on youtube on the LBSUAthletics Channel.
ABOUT UC IRVINE
• Long Beach State snapped a four-game slide against UC Irvine back in January, winning the Big West opener for both teams 88-82. Mike Caffey scored 27 points and McKay LaSalle added 16 as the 49ers picked up a crucial win on the road at the Bren Events Center.
• UC Irvine has played without 7-6 center Mamadou Ndiaye since that contest, but had won six in a row before falling Thursday night against UC Davis, dropping to third place in the Big West standings.
• Will Davis II is leading the Anteaters with an 11.6 point per game average while also leading the team in rebounding at 6.1 rebounds per game. Davis is averaging 13.4 points per game in conference play, and UCI has gotten a boost from the return of Luke Nelson, averaging 9.0 points per game in league play.
• Senior Alex Young is averaging double figures in all games as well as in Big West play, and is leading UC Irvine in assists in 2014-15.
• Long Beach State leads the all-time series 56-37, and is leading the 2014-15 Black and Blue Rivalry 19-3 leading into Saturday's contest.
UP NEXT
• Long Beach State hits the road for a pair, playing at UC Santa Barbara on Thursday before taking on Cal Poly on Saturday. Thursday's game will be televised live on Fox Sports Prime Ticket, tipping off at 7:30 p.m.
