Men's Basketball To Host Hawai'i On Spectrum SportsNet

Saturday, December 7

Long Beach, Calif.

1 p.m.

Long Beach State University

Hawai'i

Photo by: John Fajardo

12/6/2024 11:38:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Game Notes - Hawai'i

Long Beach State aims to start conference play 2-0 with a win on Saturday.

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

LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Fresh off of win over Cal State Fullerton on the road, Long Beach State returns to the Walter Pyramid, hosting Hawai'i on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. as the game will be simulcast on Spectrum SportsNet in addition to ESPN+.

Game:...................................... Long Beach State vs. Hawai'i
Date:.................................................. Saturday, December 7
Time:............................................................................ 1 p.m.
Location:.................................................. Long Beach, Calif.
Arena:............................................... Walter Pyramid (4,200)
TV:......................................................... Spectrum SportsNet
TV Talent:........................... Jason Schwartz, Devin Hudson
Webcast:.................................................................... ESPN+
Radio:............................................................. 22 West Radio
Live Stats:.............................................. beachlivestats.com

RIGHT AWAY
• Rather than playing two additional midweek games as part of the conference, the Big West approved an early week of conference play, as all 11 teams will be in league action this week. That follows a model used by other conferences. The remainder of non-conference play will resume the week after, with the bulk of conference play starting in 2025.

• Opening Big West play on the road, Long Beach State had a complete performance at Cal State Fullerton, holding the Titans to 1-of-13 shooting from three and holding the Titans under 60 points while shooting 51% as a team in a 73-56 win. Four players were in double-figures for LBSU, led by Devin Askew with 16.

• Long Beach State has been led by their guard play. Devin Askew has immediately taken on a leadership role and is shining for LBSU, averaging 16.7 points and 3.6 assists per game. TJ Wainwright is also averaging 11.2 points per game and is leading the team with 15 steals, and true freshman Kam Martin is now third on the team in scoring at 6.6 points per game, shooting over 40% from three.

• Cam Denson is giving the Beach a veteran presence as well. The versatile senior is fourth on the team at 6.5 points per game, and was the co-leader in scoring for LBSU against Portland. Denson is also averaging 5.4 rebounds per game and is shooting 53.2% from the field, including 40.0% from three this season.

• On the glass, Long Beach State has three players all averaging over five rebounds per game, headlined by Derrick Michael Xzavierro, who recorded a double-double in the season opener and is grabbing 6.5 rebounds per game. Austin Johnson is second on the squad at 5.4 per game and Cam Denson is also contributing 5.4 per game.

NEWS AND NOTES
• Long Beach State made the NCAA Tournament in 2023-24, reaching March Madness for the 10th time in program history, and the first since the 2011-12 season. Coming off of a five-game losing streak entering the Big West Championship, Long Beach State responded by winning three straight, including victories over the (1) and (2) seeds to reach the NCAA Tournament, where the program fell to No. 9 Arizona in the first round.

• The Beach returns three players from that postseason run, and turned to the transfer portal heavily while recruiting 12 newcomers to fill out the roster. Chris Acker and his staff brought in six Division I transfers, three junior college transfers and three high school recruits to complete the 2024-25 Long Beach State squad.

• The team faces a true rebuild, with 12 newcomers and just three returning players. Long Beach State returns less than 5% of its scoring, rebounding and minutes played from the 2023-24 team, ranking in the Top 10 fewest nationally in all three categories. Only 15 programs have less minutes continuity than the Beach, but Long Beach State went big in their rebuild, with the 16th ranked roster based on average height in the country.

THE STAFF
• Chris Acker enters his first Division I head coaching role with the Beach, having spent the last five seasons as an assistant coach at San Diego State and playing a crucial role in the recent success of the Aztecs. In the last five seasons with Acker as an assistant, SDSU posted a 134-34 overall record and reached four straight NCAA tournaments, the 2023-24 Sweet 16 and the 2022-23 NCAA Championship Game.

• John Montgomery comes to the Beach after nine seasons at Hawai'i, where he spent the last three as the Associate Head Coach for the Rainbow Warriors. Acker and Montgomery served on the same staff for two seasons, including the program's 2015-16 NCAA Tournament run where UH won their first ever NCAA game and won a program-record 28 games.

• Anthony Santos also comes to the Beach with plenty of Big West experience after spending 12 years at Cal State Fullerton. Santos worked his way up through the ranks, starting as a manager and ending his time with the Titans as the program's Associate Head Coach under Dedrique Taylor.

• Phillip Scott is the program's other assistant coach,coming to the Beach after a long history of collaborating with Acker in player development. Ali Tavakol joined Acker in making the move from San Diego State, and will serve as the program's Director of Basketball Operations, and Jacob Eyman, a former team captain with Portland State will work as the program's Director of Player Relations, beginning his coaching career after playing overseas.

PLAYER NOTES
• Long Beach State will get a veteran presence with the addition of six Division I transfers who will have the ability to impact the program immediately with various levels of eligibility remaining from one to three years. They are joined by three returners and three junior college players along with a trio of freshmen.

• Senior guard Devin Askew has one of the highest profiles of the newcomers to the Beach. Askew is leading the team in scoring at 16.7 points per game, and has scored in double-figures in every game for the Beach while also leading the team in assists. A critical part of the Long Beach State team, Askew leads the Big West in minutes played. One of the top recruits in the nation out of high school in Sacramento, Askew started 20 games as a true freshman with Kentucky in 2020-21, and played with both Texas and Cal before joining the Beach with two years of eligibility remaining.

• TJ Wainwright makes his return to California after two successful seasons at Robert Morris, a Horizon League school in Pennsylvania. Wainwright averaged 10.0 points per game as a sophomore, and is averaging 11.2 points per game for Long Beach State, second on the team behind Askew and leading the Beach in steals.

• The first Division I scholarship player from Indonesia, Derrick Michael Xzavierro transferred to the Beach with three years of eligibility remaining from GCU. Xzavierro (or DMX) suffered a significant injury with a collapsed lung just before his first season, costing him his 2022-23 campaign and affecting his time with the Lopes last season as well. Starting every game for Long Beach State this season, DMX has rapidly improved, recording a double-double in the season opener and now leading the team with 6.5 rebounds per game and 9 blocks while adding 5.1 points per game in scoring.

• Austin Johnson is a name that will resonate with fans of the Big West, as the graduate transfer played three seasons with Black and Blue Rivals UC Irvine. Johnson has started in 9 games for Long Beach State, and is averaging 5.2 points per game and 5.4 rebounds while coming in second on the team in blocked shots.

• A Compton native, Cam Denson is also preparing to close out his collegiate career at the Beach. A versatile and tough defender, Denson is averaging over five points and five rebounds per game, while shooting over 50% from the floor as a very efficient scorer. Denson played 64 games over the last two seasons at Pacific and averaged 8.5 points per game while leading the Tigers in rebounding and blocked shots last season.

• Long Beach native Ramel Lloyd Jr. returns to the Beach after a pair of redshirt seasons at Nebraska. Making his collegiate debut for Long Beach State, Lloyd Jr. is averaging 4.9 points per game for the Beach. A Top 100 recruit nationally out of Sierra Canyon High School, Lloyd Jr. redshirted during his first season at Nebraska before suffering a season-ending injury prior to his first game action with the Huskers.

• Kam Martin originally signed with the prior coaching staff during his final year at Blue Ridge School, and the freshman recommitted to Acker and his staff to join Long Beach State. That decision has paid off as the promising freshman has been one of the early season's bright spots, twice scoring over 15 points already and currently averaging 6.6 points per game, third most on the year while shooting over 40% from three.

• Another true freshman in Andrew Nagy is playing a big role for Long Beach State. Nagy scored a career-high eight points in 20 minutes against Fresno State, and is averaging just over two points and two rebounds per game in an average of over 15 minutes per game in his first season. Coming out of Anaheim, Nagy played high school basketball at Orange Lutheran High School before playing in the Nike EYBL with Veritas Academy, averaging 11.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. His numbers on the glass ranked in the Top 10 in the EYBL.

• Varick Lewis appeared in 31 games as a true freshman for Long Beach State in 2023-24, making 13 3-pointers off of the bench as an offensive threat. Lewis has taken on a increased role of late as has redshirt freshman Eli Djordjevic, who also returns for Long Beach State. Djordjevic played just one minute of conference action before the turn of the new year and received a medical redshirt for the season one year ago.

• Christian Richardson gives Long Beach State a true seven-footer as the 7-1 rim protector who comes to the Beach after spending two seasons at Butler College in Kansas. Averaging over a block per game in each of his two seasons at Butler CC, Richardson averaged 7.0 points and 4.6 rebounds per game while shooting over 70 percent from the field as a sophomore. Richardson was a standout of the team's preseason exhibition against Caltech, putting up a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds.