Black And Blue Rivalry Takes Center Stage For Men's Basketball Wednesday

Wednesday, February 19

Irvine, Calif.

7 p.m.

Long Beach State University

UC Irvine

Photo by: John Fajardo

Black And Blue Rivalry Takes Center Stage For Men's Basketball Wednesday

2/17/2020 10:56:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Game Notes - UC Irvine

The Beach will try to sweep the season series with UCI on the road.

By: Roger Kirk, Assistant Athletics Director, Athletic Communications

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Long Beach State is on a two-game winning streak and will match up with the league leaders on Wednesday night as the Black and Blue Rivalry takes center stage in Irvine on ESPN. A win would give Long Beach State a three-game winning streak, their longest of the season as well as a season sweep of the Anteaters for the first time since the 2012 campaign, setting the Beach up for a critical tiebreaker if necessary.

Game:.................................... Long Beach State at UC Irvine
Date:.................................... Wednesday, February 19, 2020
Time:............................................................................ 7 p.m.
Location:............................................................ Irvine, Calif.
Arena:........................................ Bren Events Center (5,000)
TV:.............................................................................. ESPN3
TV Talent:............................ Rahshaun Haylock, Dave Miller
Radio:.................................... 22 West Radio, HD FM 88.1-3
Radio Talent:.............................................. Jason Schwartz
Webcast:........................................................... WatchESPN
Live Stats:.............................................. beachlivestats.com

RIGHT AWAY
• Junior Colin Slater scored 19 points and the Beach were tremendous defensively, holding UC Irvine to 33.8 percent shooting as Long Beach State won 63-56 in the Walter Pyramid in the last meeting between the teams. LBSU was also the last conference team to win in the Bren Events Center, taking down UCI 80-70 last season behind 28 points from Deishuan Booker.

• Freshman Joshua Morgan continues to dominate the Long Beach State record books. Setting the single-game record with 8 blocks against Cal State Fullerton, Morgan is continuing to pad his single-season record with 64 blocks, and is close to joining the career Top 10 in just his first season. The dynamic paint protector is averaging 2.5 blocks per game, best in the Big West and 23rd nationally.

• Long Beach State has had balanced scoring on the season, with nine 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.

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 14.8 points per game, and is second on the team in rebounding at 5.0 boards per game while scoring 20 or more points six times, including a new career high with 28 points against UC Davis.

• Michael Carter III has been a key player for the Beach. A Division I transfer from Washington, Carter III leads the team in assists at 2.8 per game and is second on the team in scoring at 12.0 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 10.8 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 8.5 points per game on 61.7% shooting and is leading the team in rebounds at 5.9 per game while making 64 blocks, best in the Big West. Morgan needs three more blocks to join the program's career Top 10 in just one season.

• Both freshman bigs have started regularly together as Romelle Mansel has also made 18 starts and is averaging 19.4 minutes per game. Averaging 4.2 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, the 6-9 Mansel has been a strong complement to Morgan inside, and has been active defensively with 24 steals. The freshman recently set a new career-high with 11 points at CSUN.

• 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 while primarily coming off of the bench, Cobb is averaging 4.4 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, but missed six of eight games due to injury before returning against CSUN.

• LBSU's lone senior, Jordan Griffin is a dangerous outside shooter who has reached a major career milestone. With 100 career 3-pointers, Griffin became the 16th player in school history to make 100 3-pointers. Griffin is averaging 3.3 points per game and shooting 38.1 percent from three.

• Max De Geest has been another freshman who has made an impact. A strong outside shooter from New Zealand, the freshman guard is averaging 3.3 points per game and has made 18 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 2.2 points and 1.7 rebounds per game and had his best game so far with eight points in the UCI win.

• 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 is averaging 6.3 points per game in Big West action and set a season high with 18 points Feb. 1 against UCSB.

• Long Beach State's freshman class is one of the largest high school groups in program history, featuring Joshua Morgan, Romelle Mansel, Max De Geest, RJ Rhoden, Justin Rene and Shaden Knight.