Friday, March 15
Anaheim, Calif.
6:30 P.M.
Long Beach State University
15-19
67
vs
75
UC Irvine
29-5
1
2
F
Long Beach St.
33
34
67
UC Irvine
27
48
75
Photo by: John Fajardo
Long Beach State Battles But Falls 75-67 To Top-Seeded UC Irvine
3/15/2019 10:24:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Senior Deishuan Booker led Long Beach State with 21 points in the loss.
ANAHEIM, Calif. – Long Beach State led for the majority of the game, but a big second half from Robert Cartwright and an 11-0 run from the Anteaters helped the top seed UC Irvine hold off the Beach 75-67 in the Big West Tournament semifinals.
Senior Deishuan Booker led Long Beach State (15-19) with 21 points, while Bryan Alberts added 12 and Mason Riggins finished with 10 points.
The game was a back-and-forth contest befitting the rivalry and the situation, but a three-point play from Mason Riggins gave the Beach a three-point lead with 6:24 to play that the Beach would hold until halftime. Edon Maxhuni hit a leaner in the closing seconds to push the edge to six points at 33-27 as the teams hit the locker rooms.
Despite Long Beach State continuing to hold the lead, the Beach could never push the advantage to double-figures in the first ten minutes of the second half as UC Irvine (29-5) continued to hang around and eventually it cost LBSU.
With Long Beach State on top 49-46, Cartwright sparked an 11-0 run with a three-point play, tying the game first and then pushing the edge out to eight at 59-51 with 5:25 to play.
Long Beach State rallied to cut the lead to four points on multiple occasions, but got no closer as UCI eliminated the Beach in the semifinals for the second time in the last three seasons.
Booker went 5-of-6 from the line, snapping his consecutive made free throws streak at 54, but the senior finished the year making 102 of his last 105 free throws, shooting 97 percent. He smashed both the Long Beach State and Big West single season records for free throws made with 250, and ends the LBSU season the nation's leader in free throws made.
Temidayo Yussuf was held scoreless but grabbed eight rebounds to become the eighth player in school history to have over 600 rebounds in his career, while Riggins ends his career tied with Mike Caffey for the most games played in a Long Beach State uniform.
Senior Deishuan Booker led Long Beach State (15-19) with 21 points, while Bryan Alberts added 12 and Mason Riggins finished with 10 points.
Book gonna book! ??
— #BigWestMBB (@BigWestMBB) March 16, 2019
TUNE IN
?? https://t.co/Z7mIF2hwJe#LeaveALegacy | @LBSUhoops pic.twitter.com/GnXvKrPSQK
The game was a back-and-forth contest befitting the rivalry and the situation, but a three-point play from Mason Riggins gave the Beach a three-point lead with 6:24 to play that the Beach would hold until halftime. Edon Maxhuni hit a leaner in the closing seconds to push the edge to six points at 33-27 as the teams hit the locker rooms.
Despite Long Beach State continuing to hold the lead, the Beach could never push the advantage to double-figures in the first ten minutes of the second half as UC Irvine (29-5) continued to hang around and eventually it cost LBSU.
With Long Beach State on top 49-46, Cartwright sparked an 11-0 run with a three-point play, tying the game first and then pushing the edge out to eight at 59-51 with 5:25 to play.
Long Beach State rallied to cut the lead to four points on multiple occasions, but got no closer as UCI eliminated the Beach in the semifinals for the second time in the last three seasons.
Booker went 5-of-6 from the line, snapping his consecutive made free throws streak at 54, but the senior finished the year making 102 of his last 105 free throws, shooting 97 percent. He smashed both the Long Beach State and Big West single season records for free throws made with 250, and ends the LBSU season the nation's leader in free throws made.
Temidayo Yussuf was held scoreless but grabbed eight rebounds to become the eighth player in school history to have over 600 rebounds in his career, while Riggins ends his career tied with Mike Caffey for the most games played in a Long Beach State uniform.
Team Stats
LBSU
Irvine
FG%
.417
.491
3FG%
.263
.167
FT%
.750
.850
RB
30
38
TO
14
14
STL
8
6
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
21
FGM
7
3FGM
2
FTM
5
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
2
FTM
0
Pts
10
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Players Mentioned
Guard
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