Saturday, March 5
Long Beach, Calif.
4 p.m.
Long Beach State University
18-11,12-3Big West
73
vs
72
UC Riverside
16-11,9-6Big West
1
2
OT 1
F
UC Riverside
35
28
9
72
Long Beach St.
31
32
10
73
Photo by: Steve Solis
Senior Class Leaves Walter Pyramid As Big West Champions After 73-72 Overtime Win Over UC Riverside
3/5/2022 10:22:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Jadon Jones sank two free throws in the final second to secure the victory and the outright league championship.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Long Beach State's championship party came to a happy end on Saturday, as the senior class left the Walter Pyramid with a 73-72 overtime win over UC Riverside to claim the program's first regular season Big West championship since the 2012-13 campaign.
Long Beach State (18-11, 12-3 Big West) slipped behind early as UC Riverside (16-11, 9-6 Big West) was hot in the first half, shooting 65.2 percent, but the Beach forced the Highlanders into 10 first half turnovers to offset the quick start from the Highlanders. UCR led by as many as ten in the first half, but Long Beach State cut back into the lead, and trailed by four points at the half, down 35-31.
The Beach took their first lead of the second half on a massive dunk from Romelle Mansel, and the teams would trade the advantage down the stretch. Slater hit a jumper to tie the game at 63-63 with just over minute left, and that score would hold through a wild final ten seconds with a pair of missed shots, one from each side to send the game to overtime.
A 3-pointer from Joel Murray gave Long Beach State a 71-69 lead with 1:27 to play, but the Higlanders answered with a three from Dominick Pickett to give UCR a 72-71 lead with under 30 seconds to play.
In the final possession, the ball would end up in the hands of Jadon Jones, who was fouled with nine tenths of a second remaining. The freshman coolly sank both free throws to put the Beach in front, and then LBSU tapped away the inbounds heave to secure the championship.
The Beach got a big lift on the night from Roberts, who in the 134th game of his career matched a career-high with 20 points. Joel Murray led the Beach with 26 points, and Slater pitched in 12 with four assists.
Prior to the game, Long Beach State recognized their senior class of Joe Hampton, Drew Cobb, Colin Slater and Jordan Roberts. The Walter Pyramid once again became a fortress under the leadership of this group of seniors, as the Beach finished the regular season with an overall record of 11-3 in the iconic building, including closing the season by winning eight straight home games.
Long Beach State will be the No. 1 seed in the upcoming Big West Tournament in Henderson, Nevada, facing the winner of (8) CSUN and (9) CSU Bakersfield on Thursday, March 10 at Noon on ESPN+.
Long Beach State (18-11, 12-3 Big West) slipped behind early as UC Riverside (16-11, 9-6 Big West) was hot in the first half, shooting 65.2 percent, but the Beach forced the Highlanders into 10 first half turnovers to offset the quick start from the Highlanders. UCR led by as many as ten in the first half, but Long Beach State cut back into the lead, and trailed by four points at the half, down 35-31.
The Beach took their first lead of the second half on a massive dunk from Romelle Mansel, and the teams would trade the advantage down the stretch. Slater hit a jumper to tie the game at 63-63 with just over minute left, and that score would hold through a wild final ten seconds with a pair of missed shots, one from each side to send the game to overtime.
ROMELLE MANSEL! #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/IbObewHl3g
— LBSU Mens Basketball (@LBSUhoops) March 6, 2022
A 3-pointer from Joel Murray gave Long Beach State a 71-69 lead with 1:27 to play, but the Higlanders answered with a three from Dominick Pickett to give UCR a 72-71 lead with under 30 seconds to play.
In the final possession, the ball would end up in the hands of Jadon Jones, who was fouled with nine tenths of a second remaining. The freshman coolly sank both free throws to put the Beach in front, and then LBSU tapped away the inbounds heave to secure the championship.
Jadon Jones fouled on the final shot! The freshman headed to the line to shoot two. .9 seconds remaining. #GoBeach pic.twitter.com/x54peuFQGT
— LBSU Mens Basketball (@LBSUhoops) March 6, 2022
The Beach got a big lift on the night from Roberts, who in the 134th game of his career matched a career-high with 20 points. Joel Murray led the Beach with 26 points, and Slater pitched in 12 with four assists.
Prior to the game, Long Beach State recognized their senior class of Joe Hampton, Drew Cobb, Colin Slater and Jordan Roberts. The Walter Pyramid once again became a fortress under the leadership of this group of seniors, as the Beach finished the regular season with an overall record of 11-3 in the iconic building, including closing the season by winning eight straight home games.
Long Beach State will be the No. 1 seed in the upcoming Big West Tournament in Henderson, Nevada, facing the winner of (8) CSUN and (9) CSU Bakersfield on Thursday, March 10 at Noon on ESPN+.
Team Stats
UCR
LBSU
FG%
.529
.475
3FG%
.348
.429
FT%
.833
.875
RB
30
28
TO
15
9
STL
3
5
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
26
FGM
9
3FGM
2
FTM
6
Pts
20
FGM
8
3FGM
1
FTM
3
Pts
12
FGM
5
3FGM
0
FTM
2
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
Forward
/ Men's Basketball
Guard
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Forward
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