Beach To Face Second Ranked Opponent Of The Season At No. 14 Arizona

See attachment for complete Long Beach State game notes.

Game:................................ Long Beach State at #14 Arizona
Date:......................................... Sunday, November 24, 2019
Time:................................................................. 6:30 p.m. MT
Location:.......................................................... Tucson, Ariz.
Arena:............................................. McKale Center (14,644)
TV:............................................................. Pac-12 Networks
TV Talent:........................... Daron Sutton, Matt Muehlebach
Radio:.................................... 22 West Radio, HD FM 88.1-3
Radio Talent:.............................................. Jason Schwartz
Webcast:..................................................... Pac-12.com/live
Live Stats:.............................................. beachlivestats.com

RIGHT AWAY
• Long Beach State will play their second ranked opponent of the season Sunday when the Beach travels to face No. 14 Arizona at 5:30 p.m. PT. The game will be televised live on Pac-12 Networks.

• LBSU previously played No. 18 Saint Mary's this season, also on the road. The Beach played tough but ultimately fell to the Gaels 81-63 despite 14 points from Colin Slater and 13 from Chance Hunter in the defeat.

• The Beach is seeking their first win over Arizona. LBSU is 0-7 all-time against the Wildcats with all seven games having been played in Tucson. The series has been semi-regular under Dan Monson; this meeting will mark the fifth time the teams have played in his 13 seasons.

• A win Sunday would be the 19th win over a ranked foe for the Beach, and the 12th victory over a Power 6 opponent under Monson. Five of those 11 victories have come against Pac-12 opponents.

• Sophomore Chance Hunter has wasted no time getting adjusted to life at the Beach. A transfer from Cerritos College, Hunter scored 19 points on the road at UCLA before leading the team with 21 points against San Diego to go with a team-high nine rebounds. Hunter leads the team in scoring at 15.8 points per game, and is tied for the team best at 4.4 rebounds per game with freshman Joshua Morgan.

• Others off to quicks starts for Long Beach State include Michael Carter III, who is averaging 12.0 points per game and leads the team in assists, Colin Slater who has twice scored in double-figures for the Beach including at #18 Saint Mayr's, and freshman Joshua Morgan who is averaging 6.8 points and 4.4 rebounds while leading the team in blocks.

LONG BEACH STATE
• Long Beach State has officially changed the nickname for all sports other than baseball to Beach with the NCAA. Please do not refer to LBSU basketball as the 49ers.

• Long Beach State will be "playing the kids" this season, as the Beach turns to nine newcomers to the program in three transfers and six incoming freshman. Additionally, three redshirts also return to the program, giving the Beach just four returning letterwinners entering the season to go with 12 players returning for their first full year.

• Long Beach State has turned over nearly the entire roster in 2018-19.The Beach returns just 15.2 points per game from last season, a total of 20.2%, the lowest since Dan Monson's first year with the program with the team returned 5.9 points per game, just 7.2 percent of the total coming back from the 2006-07 season. That rates as among the lowest points returning in the nation; fifth lowest as total points and sixth lowest in total percentage.

• With 11 players making their debut this season for Long Beach State, that also ranks among the most in the nation. Only TCU (13), Nebraska (12), East Carolina (12) and Utah (12) will have more in 2019-20.

PLAYER NOTES
• LBSU's lone senior, Jordan Griffin continues to have an affinity for playing against Stanford. Scoring in double-figures twice, Griffin set his career high against the Cardinal in 2017 in a home win, and after scoring over his career average on the road last season, added 12 points in Tuesday's defeat. Griffin made a pair of threes in that game, and is closing in on becoming the 16th player in school history to make 100 3-pointers. Griffin is averaging 6.6 points per game and shooting 59.1 percent from the field.

• Jordan Roberts is one of the key returners for Long Beach State. A 6-9 junior, Roberts averaged 8.4 points per game in Big West play last season, and scored over 15 points in five of the team's last eight games a year ago, including a career-high on the road at UC Davis.

• LBSU returns one other starter in junior Drew Cobb. Earning a scholarship as a defensive stopper, Cobb started 17 of the final 19 games of the season, and generally drew the job of guarding the opposing team's best perimeter player. In particular, Cobb shined in Long Beach State's win on the road at UC Irvine, holding All-Big West guard and future Arizona transfer Max Hazzard to seven points on 2-of-11 shooting.

• Junior Colin Slater has been in the starting lineup for the Beach in every game this season. A transfer from Tulane, Slater played in 60 games with the green wave before joining the Beach as a redshirt last season. His best performance so far came in the team's home win over San Diego, scoring a career-high 19 points.

• Long Beach State has gotten a boost from Division I transfer in combo guard Michael Carter III. Carter III played 17 games while limited by injuries at Washington as a freshman during the 2017-18 season. After sitting out last year, Carter III is eligible immediately for the Beach and has led the team in assists in the early part of the year while also adding 12.0 points per game.

• Long Beach State's first 7-footer since Mike Vantrimpont in the 2011-12 season, Trever Irish is also looking to make a statement after returning from injury. Despite missing most of the 2018-19 campaign, Irish was a star at Central Arizona College, averaging 14.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game as a true freshman in 2017-18. While still rounding into game shape, Irish has contributed with 3.6 points and 3.2 rebounds per game.

• Breyon Jackson is back with the program after receiving a medical waiver following the 2018-19 campaign. Jackson played in the first eight games of the season, including scoring four points in a season-high 17 minutes against Mississippi State. Ultimately, Jackson was sidelined at the start of December, and did not return last year after transfering from Cloud County CC.

• In one of the largest incoming high school classes in program history, Long Beach State welcomes six newcomers for their first season in collegiate athletics. The Beach is excited to add Max De Geest, Shaden Knight, Romelle Mansel, Joshua Morgan, Justin Rene and RJ Rhoden.

• The two bigs in that group have made the largest impact through the first part of the season. Starting together for the first time against Saint Mary's, Mansel scored eight points with three boards and two blocks against the Gaels, and Morgan has been the most consistent post player this season so far for the Beach, making 10 blocks already and averaging 6.8 points and 4.4 rebounds per game on spectacular 76.5 percent shooting.

• Among the four freshman guards, Max De Geest has the most international experience, having played on multiple youth teams for New Zealand. A strong outside shooter, De Geest debuted against San Diego and then led the Beach in scoring at Stanford, hitting three 3-pointers and scoring 13 points.

Calendar

Beach To Face Second Ranked Opponent Of The Season At No. 14 Arizona

Players Mentioned

Michael Carter III

Drew Cobb

Max De Geest

Jordan Griffin

Chance Hunter

Trever Irish

Breyon Jackson

Shaden Knight

Romelle Mansel

Joshua Morgan

Justin Rene

RJ Rhoden

Jordan Roberts

Colin Slater

Long Beach State University Athletics