THIS WEEK
The Titans (8-8, 0-1) open the home portion of the Big West Conference schedule hosting UC Irvine (8-8, 1-1) with a 7:35 p.m. tip off Thursday for a FOX Prime Ticket telecast.  The Titans conclude the brief homestand with a 6 p.m. game Saturday (Jan. 17) vs. UC Davis. (12-3, 2-0 going into Jan. 15 game at UC Riverside).

QUICK NOTES
The Titans are 18-22 in Big West (or PCAA) HOME openers including victories the past three seasons when they were the overall BWC openers... This will be the 100th meeting between the two Orange County schools located about 20 miles apart… The 5-game win streak that came to an end in overtime Thursday at UC Riverside was the program's longest since a 6-gamer Feb. 2-23, 2012.

TELEVISION
The game will be telecast live by FOX Prime Ticket.    The announcers are Mark Rogondino, Corey Maggette and Rahshaun Haylock.

BE A FOLLOWER

Fans can keep up with the latest in Titans athletics by following us on Facebook (FullertonTitans), Twitter (@FullertonTitans) and Instagram (FullertonTitans). In addition, the men's basketball team has established its own Twitter presence @FullertonHoops.



TICKETS & PROMOTIONS
Fullerton is 5-1 in Titan Gym this season and is riding a 4-game (Dec. 18-Jan. 3) home winning streak .  Last season the Titans were 8-6 at home and 5-3 in home Big West contests.  Cal State Fullerton students receive free admission to Titan home games with their Titan I.D. card.  The first 500 in attendance will receive a free "Built Titan Tough" T-shirt.  Additional ticket information can be found at https://tkt.xosn.com/tickets/TicketHome.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=24600.

LAST WEEK
The Titans overcame a first-half deficit as large as 18 points in the conference opener at UC Riverside on Thursday night only to surrender a 3-point lead in the final 90 seconds of regulation and lose in overtime, 84-78.  The loss leaves them with an all-time record of 14-27 in overall Big West (and PCAA) openers… Alex Harris scored 19 of the Titans' first-half points (trailed, 46-33)… Lanerryl Johnson came off the bench for a game-high 29 points including 16 in the second half and 10 of the team's 11 overtime points… Steve McClellan grabbed a season-high 14 rebounds, one shy of his career high, before fouling out with 10 seconds left in regulation… UCR shot only 24 percent from the floor in the second half after a first period that saw it make 8 of 14 3-pointers (57 percent) and 51 percent (18 of 35) overall.




UC Irvine  7:35 p.m.
Thurs., Jan. 15  Titan Gym
Defending Big West regular season champion UC Irvine split a pair of opening weekend games at home, losing to Long Beach State, 88-82, and defeating UC Riverside, 69-55.  The Anteatery were the pre-season media pick to repeat as titlists.  They have played 9 games without 7-foot-6 center Mamadou Ndiaye, who was sidelined by a sprained foot.  He returned vs. UCR and scored 10 points in 15 minutes off the bench.  He has made 68 percent of his field-goal attempts.
The statistical leaders for fifth-year Coach Russell Turner are forward Will Davis III (10.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg) and guard Alex Young (11.9 ppg, 3.8 apg).     The teams have two common opponents in Sacramento State and UCR.  UCI beat both at home while the Titans lost to both on the road.

Head-to-Head
Thursday's game will be the 100th meeting in the CSF-UCI series.  Fullerton leads, 52-47, but UCI has won the last 4 games.  There has been minimal home-court advantage since UCI joined the PCAA/Big West in 1977-78.  Fullerton is 20-17 in Titan Gym and 19-17 in Irvine (14-14 in the Bren Center) plus 1-0 when UCI hosted at the Anaheim Convention Center in 1983.  Long Beach State (109 games) is the only more frequent CSF opponent.

Last Meeting
UCI completed a season sweep with a 62-44 win in Titan Gym on March 6, 2014, to clinch a share of the Big West regular season title.  Fullerton's point total was a season low as was its 30 percent field goal percentage.  Will Davis III had 16 points and Alex Young had 13 for UCI.  Alex Harris led the Titans with 17 points while Michael Williams had 10 to match a season low.

UC Davis,  6:05 p.m.
Sat, Jan. 17,  Titan Gym

The Aggies are the surprise team of the Big West.   Picked for seventh place in the pre-season media poll, fourth-year Coach Jim Les' squad has jumped out to a 2-0 Big West start with home wins over CSUN and Long Beach State.  Their overall 12-3 record is the best in the conference and their 10 non-conference wins are easily the most in their Div. I history.
Senior guard Corey Hawkins leads the Big West in scoring at 20.2 ppg and averages 5.3 rebounds.   As of last weekend, the Aggies were leading the nation in 3-point shooting at 43.1 percent.

Head-to-Head
The Titans hold an all-time 13-9 edge over the Aggies, 10-8 in conference games.  The teams have split the series in each of the past four seasons with each team winning twice on the road.  

Last Meeting
Fullerton won the last meeting, 74-64, in Titan Gym on Feb. 13, 2014.    Alex Harris led Fullerton with 22 points and Mike Williams added 20.  Corey Hawkins was the only Aggie in double figure with 21 points.








BIG WEST STATS
•    the Titans rank third in free-throw percentage at .707
•    the Titans rank fourth in rebound advantage at +1.9
•    individually, guard Josh Gentry ranks second in free-throw percentage at .911 and Lanerryl Johnson is fourth at .826
•    Alex Harris ranks 7th in scoring (16.1 ppg), 8th in assists (3.44 apg) and 9th in steals (1.31)
•    Steve McClellan ranks 4th in rebounding at 7.6 per game and Joe Boyd is No. 10 at 5.6 rpg

HARRIS  JOINS CLUB 1,000
Alex Harris became the 23rd Titan to score 1,000 career points with a late first-half jumper at UC Riverside on Thursday.  He finished the game with 25 points for a 3-season career total of 1,012 to rank No. 22 (he passed Joe Small at 1,011).  Within one game's range are Mike Niles at No. 21 with 1,014 points in 3 seasons (1976-79); Agee Ward at No. 20 with 1,017 in 3 seasons (1989-92); D. J. Seeley at No. 19 with 1,037 in 2 seasons (2011-13); and Mark Hill at No. 18 with 1,040 in 2 seasons (1988-90).

HARRIS HITTING STRIDE
Cal State Fullerton's top returning scorer, senior guard Alex Harris, is averaging a team-leading 16.1 points per game. He has scored in double figures in 13 games this season, including six 20-point efforts. In the Titans' last 10 games (6-4), he is averaging 19.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.5 steals while shooting 49.6 percent from the floor.

ALSO FROM THE PERIMETER
 Fullerton's top three scorers are all guards. Behind only Harris' 16.1 points per game are junior guard Lanerryl Johnson (12.8 ppg) and senior guard Moses Morgan (10.6 ppg).



THE STARTING FIVE

Cal State Fullerton has used four different lineups this season, but in the last seven games Fullerton put senior Alex Harris at the point guard position with Moses Morgan, Josh Gentry, Joe Boyd and Steve McClellan completing the starting five. The Titans are 5-2 with this lineup, which is averaging 71.2 points over that 7-game span.

McCLELLAN CLEANING THE GLASS
Senior forward Steve McClellan leads the Titans averaging 7.6 rebounds per game followed by sophomore forward Joe Boyd (5.6 rpg).  The redshirt senior, who missed his career high by one with 14 rebounds on Thursday at UCR, also tops the Titans shooting 59.2 percent (45-of-76) from the floor.  In Fullerton's last 8 games (5-3), McClellan is averaging 10.0 points and 8.8 rebounds while shooting 68.7 percent (33-of-48) from the floor.  In addition, during that stretch, he has produced all three Titan double-doubles this season.
 


POINTS OFF THE BENCH
During Cal State Fullerton's last 6 games, junior guard Lanerryl Johnson has come off the bench to average 10.8 points per game while shooting 50.0 percent (13-of-26) from three-point range.  

IT'S IN THE GENES
Nine players on the Titans' roster have relatives who are competing or have competed in college, international and/or professional athletics:
Sheldon Blackwell's brother, Perris, played basketball at San Francisco (3 yrs.) and Washington (1 yr.); his sister, Jada, played two years at Arizona State and is now a senior at Cal Poly Pomona where she was a finalist for NCAA Div. II player of the year in 2013-14; and his father, Henry, played defensive end at East Carolina.
Tre' Coggins' father, Sanford, played quarterback and wide receiver at Texas (1977-80) and his uncle, Rich, was a major league outfielder for Baltimore (1972-74), Montreal (1975), New York AL (1975-76) and Chicago AL (1976).
Josh Gentry's parents, Derrick & Gretchen Gentry, both competed in track and field at Illinois in the early 1980s.
Lanerryl Johnson's great grandfather is former ABA and NBA star and Naismith Hall of Famer Gus Johnson.  Lanerryl's cousin, Ricky, is a third-year starting point guard at Bethune Cookman.
Jordan Mason's father, Jerry, played basketball at Texas Tech.
Steve McClellan's brother, Darshawn, played in 95 games (2008-2011) of basketball at Vanderbilt.
Moses Morgan's father, Winston, played four seasons (1981-86) of basketball at Indiana.
Temjae Singleton's father, Eldridge Hudson, played four seasons (1982-83; 84-87) of basketball at UNLV after being selected the L.A. City's 4A Player of the Year in 1982 at Carson High School.
Corey Walker's brother, Taylor, played two seasons (2011-13) of basketball at LMU.
AIR TIME

The Cal State Fullerton men's basketball team is scheduled to make a total of 10 television appearances during the 2014-15 season, with the option of one additional "wild card" production. The breakdown includes five appearances via ESPN3, two on the Pac-12 Network, two on Prime Ticket and one on ROOT Sports.

2013-14 RECAP
Cal State Fullerton's 2013-14 campaign came to a close on March 13, 2014, when the Titans suffered a 66-56 loss to Long Beach State in the quarterfinals of the Big West Tournament held at Honda Center. Fullerton completed the year with a record of 11-20 overall as well as a 6-10 mark in Big West play, which secured CSF the No. 6 seed at the Tournament. 
• The Titan offense averaged 67.5 points per game last season, the lowest average for a Titan team since the 2002-03 season (62.9 ppg).
• The Titans completed the 2013-14 season with a winning record of 8-6 at Titan Gym, but a struggling mark of 3-12 on the road and a record of 0-2 at neutral site games.

BIG WEST TOURNAMENT TICKETS
Big West Basketball Tournament All-Session Tickets On Sale
Honda Center and the Big West Conference have announced that all-session tickets for the 2015 Big West Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament are now on sale.
All-session school reserved tickets are available for $69.00. These seats are located within a school's section and can be purchased through each institution's box office.
Premium all-session tickets located in the first four rows of seating are available for $149.00.  General admission all-session tickets are also available for $69.00.  These seats can be purchased at Ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster retail outlets, or by calling 800-745-3000.
The 2015 Big West Tournament will be hosted for the fifth-straight year at Honda Center in Anaheim.  The women's tournament first round and quarterfinal games will be played at Cal State Fullerton on Tuesday, March 10 and Wednesday, March 11. The men's tournament begins on Thursday, March 12 at Honda Center with four quarterfinal games.  The semifinals and championship games for both the men and women will take place Friday and Saturday at Honda Center.

TITANS IN THE NBA

Former Cal State Fullerton guard Josh Akognon became the 12th former Titan to appear in the NBA on April 10, 2013, playing four minutes and scoring two points to go with an assist for the Dallas Mavericks in their 102-91 loss to the Phoenix Suns at the American Airlines Center. Akognon, who played two seasons for Fullerton in 2007-09, became the first Titan to appear in an NBA game since Bobby Brown (2003-07) competed for the New Orleans Hornets and Los Angeles Clippers in the 2009-10 season.
Out of uniform, the Titans are represented in the NBA by former manager Wes Wilcox, now assistant general manager of the Atlanta Hawks; former administrative assistant Eric Glass, video coordinator for the Miami Heat; and former assistant coach Mark Warkentien, director of player personnel for the New York Knicks.  Former guard Leon Wood is a veteran NBA official and former Daily Titan reporter Marc Stein is ESPN's NBA reporter.

NBA DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE DRAFT
Four former members of the Cal State Fullerton men's basketball program were selected in the 2014 NBA Development League Draft on Nov. 1. D.J. Seeley (2012-13) was the first Titan selected as the first pick of the second round by the Delaware 87ers and he has made the final roster.Omondi Amoke (2012) was selected as the fifth pick of the second round by the Grand Rapids Drive. Michael Williams (2014), the 2014 Big West Newcomer of the Year, was selected as the 15th pick of the second round by the Sioux Fall Skyforce and he is listed on the final roster.Sammy Yeager (2013) was chosen as the ninth pick of the seventh round by the Los Angeles D-Fenders.








UC Riverside | 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, Jan. 8 | SRC Arena
UC Riverside (7-7, 0-0 Big West) enters Big West Conference play on a two-game losing streak after suffering back-to-back losses on the road last week to Northern Illinois (72-67 OT) and Grand Canyon (71-69).
Taylor Johns leads the Highlanders averaging 16.9 points per game as UCR scores 68.1 ppg as a team.
UCR and Fullerton played to like opponents, Sacramento State and UCLA, in non-conference action this year. The Highlanders finished 1-1 with a win over the Hornets, while the Titans lost both contests.
Head-To-Head: Thursday's game will mark the 46th meeting between Cal State Fullerton and UC Riverside as the series dates back to 1961. The 46 games rank 10th in Fullerton history for most games played against a single opponent. The Titans and Long Beach State have played on 109 occasions.
Cal State Fullerton leads the all-time series against UC Riverside, 27-18, although last year the Highlanders snapped a five-game losing streak to the Titans with a 72-69 victory at SRC Arena on Feb. 6, 2014. In Big West Conference action, Fullerton holds a 16-10 series lead, and on the road, the Titans are 9-11 at UCR.
Last Meeting:  Michael Williams' last-second three-point attempt was off the mark, and Cal State Fullerton's comeback at UC Riverside fell just short in a 72-69 loss at SRC Arena on Feb. 6, 2014. The Titans erased a 16-point deficit in the game, and took their first, 63-62, with 4:21 left to play after an inside bucket from James Johnson, but Fullerton could not finish off the Highlanders.

BE A FOLLOWER
Fans can keep up with the latest in Titans athletics by following us on Facebook (FullertonTitans), Twitter (@FullertonTitans) and Instagram (FullertonTitans). In addition, the men's basketball team has established its own Twitter presence @FullertonHoops.

BIG WEST STATS
• Cal State Fullerton's .711 free-throw percentage ranks third in the Big West Conference.
• The Titans' +1.9 rebounding advantage ranks third in the league.
• Alex Harris enters the week averaging 15.5 points per game, which ties for sixth in the Big West. In addition, Harris' 3.47 assists per game rate eighth in the league while his 1.40 steals per game tie for seventh in the conference. Harris joined UC Davis' Corey Hawkins (20.3 ppg/3.58 apg/1.83 spg) and Long Beach State's Mike Caffey (16.4 ppg/3.63 apg/1.81 spg) as the only other two players in the Big West to rank in the top 10 of all three categories. Harris' 32.33 minutes per game tie for seventh.
• Steve McClellan's average of 7.1 rebounds per game ranks fourth in the Big West Conference, followed by Joe Boyd's average of 5.5 rpg, which rates 10th in the league.
• Josh Gentry's .927 free throw percentage (38-of-41) currently ranks second in the Big West.
• Lanerryl Johnson's .81 8 free throw percentage (36-of-44) ranks fifth in the Big y Yeager (2013) was chosen as the ninth pick of the seventh round by the Los Angeles D-Fenders.