Men's Basketball Begins Big West Journey Wednesday At CSUN

Wednesday, January 8

Northridge, Calif.

7 p.m.

Long Beach State University

CSUN

Photo by: John Fajardo

1/7/2020 11:29:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Game Notes - CSUN

The first game of the conference season will be broadcast live on ESPN3.

By: Roger Kirk, Assistant Athletics Director, Athletic Communications

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- It's time for Big West conference play as Long Beach State opens the league season on the road with a pair of games. The Beach will start with a national broadcast on ESPN3 against CSUN on Wednesday, January 8, before taking on UC Santa Barbara on the road Saturday.

Game:......................................... Long Beach State at CSUN
Date:....................................... Wednesday, January 8, 2020
Time:............................................................................ 7 p.m.
Location:.................................................... Northridge, Calif.
Arena:............................................... The Matadome (2,000)
TV:.............................................................................. ESPN3
TV Talent:........................................ Trent Rush, Dave Miller
Radio:.................................... 22 West Radio, HD FM 88.1-3
Radio Talent:.............................................. Jason Schwartz
Webcast:........................................................... WatchESPN
Live Stats:.................................................. gomatadors.com

RIGHT AWAY
• Long Beach State split the season series with CSUN last year, with both teams winning at home. The Beach has a 40-25 edge all-time in the series, with the Matadors the seventh-most played opponent for LBSU.

• Deishuan Booker and Bryan Alberts both scored 20 points to help lead Long Beach State to an 80-78 win over CSUN in the last meeting between the teams. Defending Big West Player of the Year Lamine Diane is averaging 30.7 points and 11.3 rebounds per game for the Matadors, but has played just three games in 2019-20.

• Long Beach State has had balanced scoring on the season, with eight different players reaching double-figures on the year with five reaching ten points on multiple occasions, led by leading scorers Chance Hunter, Michael Carter III, Colin Slater and Joshua Morgan.

• Freshman Joshua Morgan passed Jordan Roberts as the team's active leader in career blocks in just 12 games, and leads the team with 30 blocks this season, an average of 2.0 per game, best in the Big West.

• Participating in the Wooden Legacy over Thanksgiving weekend, the Beach opened with a win over Providence which marked the 12th win over a Power 6 program for Long Beach State under Dan Monson. It was also the second straight victory over a Big East opponent as LBSU was previously winners in 2015 over Seton Hall at the Charleston Classic.

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, two redshirts also return to the program, as the Beach is currently playing just three returning letterwinners to go with 8 players suiting up for their first full year while four players sit out 2019-20 on redshirt seasons.

• Long Beach State has turned over nearly the entire roster in 2019-20.The Beach returns just 15.2 points per game from the 2018-19 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
• 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 13.6 points per game, and is second on the team in rebounding at 5.1 boards per game while scoring 20 or more points on four occasions.

• Michael Carter III has played every game this season for Long Beach State and has been a key player for the Beach. A Division I transfer from Washington, Carter III leads the team in assists at 3.1 per game and is second on the team in scoring at 12.1 points per game. Carter III set a career-high with 15 rebounds against CSULA, recording his first career double-double.

• 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. Scoring a career-high 20 points against Pacific, Slater also added 19 against San Diego and is third on the team in scoring at 11.0 points per game while also leading the team in minutes played.

• Freshman Joshua Morgan has been a bright spot among the young players this season. A regular starter as a true freshman, Morgan is averaging 8.4 points per game on 62.9% shooting and is leading the team in rebounds at 5.9 per game while making 32 blocks, best in the Big West. Morgan is on track to join the single-season best rim protectors in school history, already tied for 17th.

• Both freshman bigs have started regularly together as Romelle Mansel has also made eight starts and is averaging 17.1 minutes per game. Averaging 3.6 points and 3.1 rebounds per game, the 6-9 Mansel has been a strong complement to Morgan inside, and has been active defensively with 18 steals. The freshman had his best game of the year at Florida, scoring nine points with six rebounds and a steal against the Gators.

• LBSU's lone senior, Jordan Griffin is a dangerous outside shooter who is closing in on a career milestone. With 99 career 3-pointers, Griffin is seven away becoming the 16th player in school history to make 100 3-pointers. Griffin is averaging 4.7 points per game and shooting 44.1 percent from three.

• LBSU returns one other junior in Drew Cobb. Earning a scholarship as a defensive stopper, Cobb started 17 of the final 19 games of the season a year ago, and generally drew the job of guarding the opposing team's best perimeter player. This year, coming off of the bench, Cobb is averaging 5.3 points and 4.0 rebounds per game, but has missed six out of the last eight games due to injury.

• Max De Geest has been another freshman who has made an impact. A strong outside shooter from New Zealand, the freshman guard is averaging 4.7 points per game and is shooting 32.7 percent from beyond the arc, making 16 3-pointers so far in 2019-20.

• 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 2.0 points and 2.0 rebounds per game.

• Jordan Roberts is one of four 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. Roberts has scored in double-figures in two of his last three games and is returning to form for LBSU.