Men's Basketball Closes Homestand With Critical Rivalry Game With Cal State Fullerton

Tuesday, February 8

Long Beach, Calif.

7 p.m.

Long Beach State University

Cal State Fullerton

Photo by: John Fajardo

Men's Basketball Closes Homestand With Critical Rivalry Game With Cal State Fullerton

2/7/2022 3:53:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Game Notes - Cal State Fullerton

Long Beach State and the Titans are tied at the top of the Big West, both at 7-1 in league play.

By: Roger Kirk, Associate Athletics Director, Communications & Broadcast

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- The top two teams in the Big West face off for first place on Tuesday night as Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State will play their only game of the regular season against each other. The Beach is riding an eight-game winning streak heading into the game, which will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

RIGHT AWAY
• Students have returned to on-campus instruction on February 7 at CSULB, and Long Beach State is likewise welcoming fans with ticket packages and other incentives to once again join the Beach in person in the Walter Pyramid for a critical game with just a month left to play in the regular season.

• Long Beach State has won eight straight games, matching the longest winning streak since the 2012-13 season, which was also the last time the Beach won the Big West. The Beach leads the conference in scoring at 70.8 points per game, and playing exciting, fast-paced basketball, ranking in the Top 25 in the nation in average tempo per Ken Pomeroy.

• Long Beach State is now 10-0 this season when holding their opponents under 70 points, and has averaged 73.2 points per game during the six-game winning streak. Most importantly over that stretch, the team is holding opponents to 23.6 percent shooting from three and forcing an average of over 15 turnovers while holding foes to 63.0 points per game.

• It's been a block party as Long Beach State now leads the Big West in blocked shots, averaging 3.8 per game, led by a pair of freshmen as Aboubacar Traore has 34 on the year while Jadon Jones has made 21.

COVID-19 NEWS AND NOTES
• If you are coming to the Walter Pyramid this season, please allow for extra time to enter the venue due to COVID-19 protocols as well as parking. Parking payment can be done in two ways, either at the parking machines on site or via the Parkmobile App. Masks are required inside the building, and either proof of vaccination or a negative test is required for all entry.

• After 23 days off, Long Beach State finally returned to action on January 5, hosting Westcliff in the Walter Pyramid for a 90-64 victory. Colin Slater led the Beach with 23 points in the win. The stretch without games was longer than even the longest stretch for the team in 2020-21, as LBSU had six consecutive games canceled due to COVID-19 protocols.

PLAYER NOTES
• Joel Murray has transitioned seamlessly to the Division I game, currently leading the team in scoring at 16.4 points per game. Murray ranks second in the Big West in scoring, and was the Big West Player of the Week for Jan. 24, the first LBSU player to win the honor since Deishuan Booker in the 2018-19 season. A strong defender as well, Murray was a two-time All-American at West Texas A&M, where he guided the team to the Division II NCAA Championship Game last season as the team's point guard.

• Joe Hampton recorded his first career double-double against Wright State, and is now third on the team in scoring at 9.9 points per game while averaging 3.5 boards in his second season at the Beach. A starter throughout last season, Hampton is a Big West Sixth Man of the Year candidate while serving as a high-profile player due to his association with Netflix's Last Chance U: Basketball showcasing his time at East LA College.

• Colin Slater is having a tremendous final season. Now in his sixth year of college basketball, Slater is averaging 13.6 points per game this season, second on the team. Slater scored a career-high 27 points at UCLA, the first of six times he's scored 20 or more this season. He is now the active D1 leader in points scored on the team combined with his time at Tulane, and is leading the team in 3-pointers made on the year while shooting 41.4 percent from distance.

• Jordan Roberts has been a consistent presence in the Long Beach State lineup over the last five seasons. Since 2017-18, Roberts has played in 129 games for Long Beach State, sixth-most in school history, and is tracking down a trio of Beach Legends in Casper Ware, TJ Robinson and Eugene Phelps next. He is also Long Beach State's active career leader in every category other than 3-pointers made, and is averaging 8.2 points and 4.9 rebounds per game this season, second most on the team.

• A defensive stalwart, Drew Cobb started the first seven games this season for the Beach and is averaging 4.6 points and 3.7 rebounds per game while traditionally guarding the opposing team's top perimeter player. Cobb returned to action against CSU Bakersfield and had a typically solid performance with four points, three rebounds, two assists, two steals and no turnovers in 22 minutes.

• Those three players that chose to come back for an additional season, Drew Cobb, Colin Slater and Jordan Roberts are serving as the team's captains this season.

• Freshman Jadon Jones is a local product made good, in his second season at the Beach coming out of St. Anthony High School in Long Beach. Now having started 17 games in a row, Jones is averaging 9.1 points per game while sitting second on the team with 35 3-pointers made on 34.0% shooting. Jones set a career-high in scoring in the rematch against No. 5 UCLA, scoring 27 points to lead the Beach, and earned All-Big West Tournament honors a year ago in a breakout performance.

• True freshman Aboubacar Traore set a modern-era record in rebounding for LBSU in the team's game at UC Riverside, grabbing 23 boards in the win. It was the third-most rebounds in a game in school history, and the most since 1961. In the process, Traore became the third player in the country this season to record multiple games of 20 rebounds, joining elite company in Oscar Tshiebwe of Kentucky and Armando Bacot of North Carolina. The 23 rebounds was also the third most in a game this season.

• Traore has made an immediate impact with the Beach. A true freshman, Traore is averaging 7.9 points and leading the team at 8.1 rebounds per game while making a team-high 34 blocks. He recently set a career-best with 19 points against UC Irvine, and has recorded three double-doubles this season. He is leading the Big West in rebounding in league play at 10.6 rebounds per game.

• Romelle Mansel continues to play a key role for Long Beach State. Now having started 30 games in his career, Mansel is averaging 2.6 rebounds per game and is in his third year at the Beach. After missing one game, Mansel returned with a strong game at #16 USC, scoring 10 points off the bench with seven rebounds.

• Tobias Rotegaard has played in every game this season for Long Beach State as a redshirt freshman from UAB. Rotegaard set a career-high with 10 points at UC Davis and is now fourth on the team in 3-pointers made this season. RJ Rhoden is another redshirt freshman who is receiving increased minutes in the latter stages of Big West action.