Beach Basketball Visits Arizona State Monday

Monday, November 12

Tempe, Ariz.

6:00 P.M.

Long Beach State University

Arizona State

11/11/2018 10:35:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Complete LBSU Game Notes

Playing its third game in four days, Long Beach State will be back on the Pac-12 Network to take on the Arizona State Sun Devils at 6 p.m. PT in Tempe.

By: Tyler Hendrickson, Associate Athletic Communications Director

Game: Long Beach State at Arizona State
Date: Monday, November 12, 2018
Time: 6:00 p.m. PT
Location: Tempe, Ariz.
Arena: Wells Fargo Arena (14,198)
TV: Pac-12 Network
TV Talent: Daron Sutton (PxP) & Eddie House (Color)
Radio: 22WestMedia.com
Radio Talent: Jason Schwartz
Webcast: Pac-12.com
Live Stats: TheSunDevils.com

RIGHT AWAY
• The Beach picked up a victory in its home opener on Saturday, defeating visiting Menlo College, 78-57, to earn an eighth straight victory on Homecoming. That evens Long Beach State's record at 1-1 heading into its third game in four days to open the 2018-19 season.

• The offense started slowly during Saturday's win, but the Beach were able to get things going with 50 points in the second half to pull away for the victory. Guards Jordan Griffin and Edon Maxhuni each had 12 points after halftime to help lead the surge, and they joined Deishuan Booker (19 points) and Temidayo Yussuf (11 points) in double-figures.

• Dan Monson showcased his full bench on Saturday, as all 13 available players saw 10 or more minutes in the game. Senior Mason Riggins led the way with 23 minutes on the floor, collecting seven rebounds, three blocks, two assists and a steal to fill up the stat sheet.

SCOUTING THE SUN DEVILS
• Arizona State is 2-0 on the year after a pair of home games, which started with a102-94 double-ovetime win over Cal State Fullerton. The Sun Devils more easily dispatched of McNeese State in its most recent contest, winning 80-52 on Friday night in Tempe.

• Freshman guard Luguentz Dort led ASU with 28 points in the opener, then followed that up with 25 more against McNeese State. His per-game average of 26.5 points ranks ninth in the country among players who've played at least two games this season.

• On the inside, senior forward Zylan Cheatham, who is a San Diego State transfer, is averaging 14.0 points, 10.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game to lead the team in the latter two statistics.

COOK, BOOK
• Senior point guard Deishuan Booker again led the Beach in scoring with 19 against Menlo, going 11/12 from the free-throw line. He had 15 of Long Beach State's 28 first-half points to keep the team in front after 20 minutes.

• Booker's gotten his scoring touch going quickly this year, and his average of 25.0 points per game is higher than his previous career-high of 22 points in a game entering the season.

• That performance followed up his career-high 31 points at No. 21 UCLA in the season-opener. Booker was 5/7 from the 3-point line, which established a new personal best in three's made.

• The Las Vegas, Nev. native is shooting 61.9 percent from the floor through two games, and is 5-8 (.625) from distance and 19-20 (.950) on his free throws.

BALANCE BEACH
• Behind Booker's standout scoring, Long Beach State has shown solid depth and balance in the early part of the season. A total of eight players are averaging over 5.5 points per game, with seven averaging between 5.5-9.0 points.

• Additionally, all 13 eligible players appeared in both games for the Beach, and all have averaged at least six minutes.

ONE-TWO, ONE-TWO
• LBSU will be playing its second Pac-12 opponent of the season, with three more Pac-12 opponents waiting on the schedule. Long Beach State is looking to defeat a Pac-12 foe for the third consecutive season, after picking up wins over both Oregon State and Stanford a season ago.

• Monday's game kicks off a 12-day road trip for Long Beach State, which includes a stop in Starkville to face Mississippi State, as well as a pair of games in Las Vegas for the MGM Resorts Main Event featuring games against Iona and either Utah Valley or Hartford.

SIX SENIORS
• Long Beach State boasts a six-player senior class, giving LBSU an older roster, but not necessarily one with a ton of experience. Only two of the six seniors (Temidayo Yussuf and Mason Riggins) have spent more than two seasons at the Beach, with the other four transferring in from the junior college ranks.

• LBSU returns a pair of All-Big West honorees from a season ago. Both Yussuf and Booker were Honorable Mention All-Big West selections.

• Yussuf is in his fifth season at Long Beach State, after redshirting his sophomore campaign. The Oakland native has played in 97 games during his career and has a chance to become the 24th member of the 1,000-point club at Long Beach State, needing to score 297 points during his final season to reach that mark.

• Booker led the Big West in assists last season and will look to build on that during his second year at the Beach. He scored in double-digits 18 times as a junior and had three games with 10 or more assists.

• Also in the senior class, Bryan Alberts should be one of the leading perimeter weapons for the Beach in his second and final season in Long Beach. The Gonzaga transfer had an immediate impact at the start of last season before an injury caused him to miss a month of action. The three-point marksman was second on the team in scoring last season, averaging 11.3 points per game and was in double-figures a dozen times.

• Fellow senior Mason Riggins is in his fourth year at the Beach, making him another frontcourt mainstay to go with Yussuf. His first game of the 2018-19 season will represent his 100th appearance for the Beach and he's made 42 starts over his previous three years. Riggins led the team with a field goal percentage of 62.4 percent, a statistic he's improved each season in Long Beach.

THIS AND THAT
• With a 70-69 win at UC Santa Barbara on Mar. 1, 2018, Long Beach State earned the 1,000th win in program history. Dan Monson is responsible for 185 of those wins, making him the winningest head coach in Long Beach State history.

• Departed senior Gabe Levin was a First Team All-Big West selection after leading the Beach in scoring (18.5 ppg) and rebounding (7.2 rpg) in 2017-18. Levin is set to begin his professional playing career in Israel with Bnei Rav-Bariach Herzliya.

• On Thursday, Nov. 8, Long Beach State basketball legend Casper Ware entered the Long Beach State Athletics Hall of Fame. Ware was at the Beach from the 2009-12 seasons, helping the Beach to the NCAA Tournament as a senior. He was a two-time Big West Player of the Year and is currently a member of Melbourne United in the National Basketball League in Australia.