Men’s Basketball Falls On The Road At Cal State Bakersfield

Saturday, January 4

Bakersfield, Calif.

6:30 p.m.

Long Beach State University

6-10,2-2Big West

Cal State Bakersfield

8-8,2-2Big West

Long Beach St.

CSU Bakersfield

Men’s Basketball Falls On The Road At Cal State Bakersfield

1/4/2025 9:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score - CSUB

Rebounding woes undo a strong shooting night from the Beach in an 80-65 loss in Bakersfield.

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

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Long Beach State continued their solid offensive efficiency on Saturday night at Cal State Bakersfield, but struggled on the glass and containing Runners' leading scorer Jemel Jones in an 80-65 defeat.

                Long Beach State (6-10, 2-2 Big West) shot over 50% for the sixth time in their last seven games, going 23-for-45 from the floor. The Beach were led by Devin Askew who finished with a team-high 21 points, while Austin Johnson matched a season-high with 14 points.

                Cal State Bakersfield (8-8, 2-2 Big West) had the answer for Long Beach State's hot shooting on the glass. The Runners out-rebounded the Beach 43 to 20 overall and had 19 offensive rebounds that helped lead to 14 second chance points and 14 more shots on the night, helping CSUB hold off the Beach.

                Long Beach State got off to a quick start, finding Johnson inside and then getting a quick bucket from Devin Askew, but early turnovers sparked a 9-0 run for the Runners. The Beach kept things close behind scoring from Johnson and Askew for a while, but eventually the Bakersfield lead grew from four to nine at the half at 39-30.

                A quick three in the opening minutes of the second half from Askew cut the lead to five at 40-35, but the Beach would get no closer on the evening. Jemel Jones finished with 25 points to lead CSUB in scoring, while Corey Stephenson had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds and Tom Mark also had 10 rebounds for the Runners.

                Long Beach State will stay on the road, playing at UC Davis in the team's next action. That game is scheduled for a 2 p.m. tipoff on Saturday, January 11 on ESPN+.