FULLERTON, Calif. --- Jessica Gertz came off the bench to lead Long Beach State with an 18-point performance as the visiting 49ers defeated Cal State Fullerton, 65-48, on Thursday night at Titan Gym in Big West Conference action.
Long Beach State's (14-7, 5-1 Big West) win coupled with a UC Riverside loss at UC Davis put the 49ers in sole possession of first place in the Big West Conference standings. The Titans (4-16, 1-6 Big West) are ninth in the standings.
The 49ers instituted full-court press for much of the game, and forced 20 Titan turnovers, leading to 26 points for Long Beach State. In addition, the 49ers pulled down 18 offensive rebounds leading to 13 second-chance points. The LBSU bench outscored CSF 40-9.
Sophomore Jade Vega led Cal State Fullerton scoring 12 points on 5-of-10 shooting, while Daeja Smith added 11 points, eight rebounds and three blocks. China Henderson chipped in nine points for Fullerton off the bench.
Gertz delivered five assists, and Martina McCowan added 10 points for LBSU as 11 players totaled at least 10 minutes of playing time.
Each team shot 36.2 percent from the field, but LBSU moved the ball with 21 assists on 25 baskets, while the Titans delivered 12 assists on 17 baskets. The 49ers also drained 10 three-point field goals.
Fullerton trailed 10-3 at the 6:04 mark of the first quarter after Iman Lathan's drive through the lane resulted in the Titans' first field goal of the game.
Lathan's basket sparked a 10-0 run as Fullerton came back to take an 11-10 lead at the 3:43 mark when Vega buried a three-pointer from the top of the arc.
Long Beach State ended the three-plus remaining minutes on a 7-2 run and held a 17-13 lead at the end of the quarter. The 49ers outscored the Titans 16-10 in the second quarter to take a 10-point, 33-23, lead at halftime.
The third quarter saw little offense with each team scoring nine points apiece, and LBSU pushed its lead to 15 as Gertz drained a trey with 8:33 remaining in the fourth, putting the game out of reach for the Titans.
Cal State Fullerton returns to action at 2:30 p.m., at UC Davis on Saturday.
Notes: Cal State Fullerton is on a three-game losing streak…Long Beach State leads the all-time series 69-35.
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