Beach Returns Home To Host UCSB Saturday On ESPN3

Saturday, January 26

Long Beach, Calif.

7:00 P.M.

Long Beach State University

UC Santa Barbara

Photo by: John Fajardo

1/25/2019 10:27:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Game Notes - UCSB

LBSU looks to continue their strong play in the Walter Pyramid.

By: Roger Kirk, Assistant Athletics Director, Athletic Communications

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- The Beach returns to the Walter Pyramid for another live broadcast, hosting UC Santa Barbara at 7 p.m. on ESPN3. With a win, the Beach will stay just one game behind the league leaders and pick up a crucial victory against another one of the conference leaders.

Game:..................... Long Beach State at UC Santa Barbara
Date:.......................................... Saturday, January 26, 2019
Time:....................................................................... 7:00 p.m.
Location:.................................................. Long Beach, Calif.
Arena:............................................... Walter Pyramid (4,200)
TV:.............................................................................. ESPN3
TV Talent:.............. Sam Farber, Bob Williams, Megan Reza
Radio:.................................... 22 West Radio, HD FM 88.1-3
Radio Talent:.............................................. Jason Schwartz
Webcast:........................................................... WatchESPN
Live Stats:.............................................. beachlivestats.com

RIGHT AWAY
• Despite 20 points from Deishuan Booker and a career-high 19 points from KJ Byers, Long Beach State came up short on the road at CSUN in a 86-71 loss Wednesday.

• Long Beach State opened conference play with an impressive home win, downing defending champions UC Davis 82-77 in the Walter Pyramid. Senior Deishuan Booker scored a career-high 32 points as well as making 19 of 20 free throws in that contest.

• After four games in conference play, Booker is averaging over 28.3 points per game and enters Friday second in the nation with 128 made free throws. The senior is shooting nearly 90% from the line on the year, one of the country's leaders in that category as well.

• Booker played a key role in the last meeting between the teams, going coast-to-coast in the closing seconds for a buzzer-beating win on the road in the Thunderdome, a 70-69 victory for the Beach. Booker and Gabe Levin both score 20 points in that game, while Temidayo Yussuf led the team with 15 rebounds.

• In Long Beach State's most-played series, the Beach leads the all-time record 67-59 in what has traditionally been a strong competitive game. LBSU has won four of the last five games, but the Gauchos won the last game in the Walter Pyramid, 80-70.

• Long Beach State continues to play exciting, up-tempo basketball, ranking the nation's Top 50 in tempo according to Ken Pomeroy. The Beach also features the 11th most experienced roster in the nation, and ranks in the Top 25 in minutes continuity.

PLAYER NOTES
• Long Beach State boasts a six-player senior class, giving LBSU an older roster. 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 other schools, though all six played during the 2017-18 season for the Beach.

• LBSU returns a pair of All-Big West honorees from a season ago. Both Temidayo Yussuf and Deishuan Booker were Honorable Mention All-Big West selections one season ago, and are again leading the Beach in scoring this season.

• Booker continues to lead the team in scoring, averaging 17.2 points per game while guiding the offense, leading the team with 88 assists this season, averaging 4.6 per game, fourth in the Big West this season.

• In addition, Booker has been phenomenal to start league play. Averaging 28.3 points per game, Booker is also averaging over three assists and steals during that time frame, and has gone 43-of-47 from the line, shooting over 50 percent from the field and 90 percent from the line.

• Senior center Temidayo Yussuf has been a beast inside for the Beach. The Oakland native has scored in double-figures in seven straight games, including two 20-point games. He has also recorded double-doubles in three of his last six games and in back-to-back contests against Pacific and Pepperdine. He has been held out of the last five games for the Beach.

• Yussuf established a new career high with 28 points at San Diego on Dec. 1. He was an impressive 10-of-13 from the field and 8-for-10 at the free throw line to lead the Beach.

• With 193 points scored this season, Yussuf now has 896 points scored in his career as he seeks to become the 25th member of the 1,000-point club at Long Beach State. With 12 games left on the regular season schedule, Yussuf would need to average just over eight points per game to reach the milestone.

• Senior forward Mason Riggins has been in the starting lineup in each of the last eight contests and has gotten more involved for the Beach. He has made multiple field goals in each of those games, and was a perfect 6-for-6 from the field against Bethesda, matching a career-high in his first double-double of the season. The senior also scored 14 points in LBSU's win at UC Irvine.

• Riggins leads the Beach in field goal percentage this season, making 61.4 percent of his shots from the floor.

• Also in the senior class, Bryan Alberts has been one of the leading perimeter weapons for the Beach in his second and final season in Long Beach. The Gonzaga transfer is third on the team in scoring with 10.9 points per game, and has made a team-leading 46 3-pointers, shooting 38.3 percent.

• The remaining seniors on the team include x-factor KJ Byers, who is averaging 8.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game along with 23 blocks as a strong defensive presence and double-double threat. Also returning is a fellow junior college transfer Breamon Richard, who starred for two seasons at Long Beach City College before joining the Beach.

• Sophomore Edon Maxhuni has scored in double-figures eight times on the year, and is shooting a team-best 46.4 percent from three. He is currently fifthh on the team in scoring at 7.8 points per game.

• Other sophomores making an impact this season include Jordan Roberts, a second-year player at the Beach who's averaging 5.6 points and 3.9 rebounds per game, as well as sophomore transfer Drew Cobb who has made five straights starts for the Beach.