Cal State Fullerton at Cal Poly
Thurs., Jan. 22, 2015 | 7 p.m.
Mott Athletics Center | San Luis Obispo, CA
Cal State Fullerton at UC Santa Barbara
Sat., Jan. 24, 2015 | 4 p.m.
The Thunderdome | Santa Barbara, CA
THIS WEEK
The Titans (8-10, 0-3) take their almost annual (games were split in 2010 and 2011 seasons) trip to the Central Coast of California to battle Cal Poly SLO and UC Santa Barbara, still seeking their first Big West Conference victory. All three teams went 0-2 last week. Fullerton has gone 2-0 twice on this trip, 1-1 on 9 occasions and 0-2 five times. Last year they split, winning at Cal Poly and losing at UCSB.
QUICK NOTES
The Titans have lost three in a row to open Big West play on the heels of a 5-game win streak. The last Titan team to open 0-3 was in 2003-04 in Coach Bob Burton's first year. The 2001-02 team of Coach Donny Daniels opened 0-6.
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
Cal State Fullerton students receive free admission to Titan home games with their Titan I.D. card. Additional ticket information can be found by clicking here http://bit.ly/1wl9y6t. Fullerton is 5-3 in Titan Gym this season. Last season the Titans were 8-6 at home and 5-3 in home Big West contests.
LAST WEEK
The Titans lost a pair of Big West home games in similar fashion. On Thursday they trailed UC Irvine by as many as 17 points in the second half, closed to within 3 for several possessions but lost, 63-58. On Saturday they trailed UC Davis by as many as 16 points in the second half, closed to within 5 points on several occasions but lost, 79-68. The trend began the previous week at UCR when the Titans trailed by as many as 18 points. They came back to take a 3-point lead late in regulation but surrendered it and lost in overtime.
at Cal Poly SLO, 7 p.m.
Thurs., Jan. 22, Mott Athletics Center
The Mustangs
Cal Poly has lost its last three games after opening Big West play with an overtime win at Hawai'i. The Mustangs lead the Big West in defense, allowing 58.8 ppg. Top scorers are David Nwaba (13.3 ppg), Brian Bennett (11.1 ppg) and Reese Morgan (9.9), son of former Titan forward Tom Morgan (1977-80). The teams have only one common opponent so far this season in Santa Clara, which lost at home to Cal Poly but beat Fullerton at home in its season opener. Cal Poly has played only 4 home games, going 3-1.
Head-to-Head
The Mustangs hold a 34-26 advantage over the Titans in the all-time series and a 19-17 edge since 1996-97 in Big West play. The teams are 9-9 in San Luis Obispo at the Div. I level. The teams have split the series in each of the last three seasons.
Last Meeting
Fullerton won the last meeting, 67-59, at Cal Poly on Feb. 20, 2014. Mike Williams led Fullerton with 23 points and 7 rebounds while Alex Harris had 13 points and Steve McClellan added 10. Williams hit 14 of 16 free throws. Chris Eversley had a double-double for the Mustangs with 19 points and 12 boards and Dave Nwaba added 13 points. Fullerton was nursing a 56-50 lead with 4:37 to play and held the Mustangs scoreless for more than 3 minutes.
at UC Santa Barbara, 4 p.m.
Sat., Jan. 24, The Thunderdome
The Gauchos
UCSB, which hosts UC Riverside on Thursday, lost both of its game last week -- at home to Cal State Northridge and at Long Beach State -- to blunt a 3-game winning streak. The Gauchos are built around muscular center Alan Williams, who averages a double-double at 17.1 ppg and 11.6 rpg. They have three other double-digit scorers in Michael Bryson (12.4 ppg), John Green (10.4 ppg) and Gabe Vincent (10.0 ppg). They have only one common opponent with Fullerton in Seattle, which both teams defeated at home. UCSB is 1-2 vs. the Pac-12, beating Washington State on a neutral court and losing at Oregon (in OT) and Oregon State. UCSB is 5-2 at home.
Head-to-Head
The Gauchos lead the all-time series, 41-37. The teams have split the series in each of the last four seasons with the home team winning every time. Fullerton has lost five in a row at UCSB since a 62-58 win on Jan. 10, 2009.
Last Meeting
The Gauchos won the last meeting, 80-65, on Feb. 22, 2014, at The Thunderdome. Alan Williams had a big game with 22 points and 18 rebounds while Zalmico Harmon contributed 20 points and Michael Bryson had 14. Mike Williams countered with 29 for Fullerton. UCSB jumped out to a 13-2 lead and stayed in control although Fullerton had a late 20-10 run --15 scored by Williams -- to pull within 8 points at 65-57.
BIG WEST STATS
• the Titans rank second in rebound advantage at +2.2
• the Titans rank third in free-throw percentage at .703
• individually, guard Josh Gentry ranks second in free-throw percentage at .911 and Lanerryl Johnson is fourth at .842
• Alex Harris ranks 5th in scoring (16.3 ppg), 8th in assists (3.28 apg) and 5th in steals (1.56)
• Steve McClellan ranks 4th in rebounding at 7.6 rpg and Joe Boyd is No. 12 at 5.5 rpg
• Lanerryl Johnson is 8th (1.89) and Moses Morgan is 10th (1.78) in 3-pt FGs per game.
HARRIS JOINS CLUB 1,000
Alex Harris begins the week with 1,049 career points. He became the 23rd Titan to score 1,000 with a late first-half jumper at UC Riverside on Jan. 8. Later in the game he moved up to the No. 22 spot ahead of Joe Small (at 1,011). Against UCI on Jan. 15 he passed Mike Niles (at 1,014) and Agee Ward (at 1,017). Against UC Davis on Jan. 17 he passed D. J. Seeley (at 1,037) and Mark Hill (at 1,040) to move into the No. 18 spot. Sitting at No. 17 is Kwame Vaughn with 1,072 and No. 16 is Pape Sow with 1,135. At his current pace, Harris could approach the Top Ten (Cedric Ceballos is No. 10 with 1,284).
MORE ON ALEX HARRIS
Senior guard Alex Harris is averaging a team-leading 16.3 points per game. He has scored in double figures in 14 games this season, including seven 20-point efforts. In the Titans' last 11 games (6-5), he is averaging 19.4 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.7 steals while shooting 49.4 percent from the floor.
ALSO FROM THE PERIMETER
Fullerton's top three scorers are all guards. Behind only Harris' 16.3 points per game are junior guard Lanerryl Johnson (12.6 ppg) and senior guard Moses Morgan (9.8 ppg).
THE STARTING FIVE
Cal State Fullerton has used five different lineups this season. The most common (7 games, consecutively Dec. 13 thru Jan. 15) 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. The lineup was new vs. UC Davis on Saturday with Harris and McClellan being joined by Lanerryl Johnson (9th start), Kennedy Esume (4th start) and Sheldon Blackwell (2nd start).
McCLELLAN CLEANING THE GLASS
Senior forward Steve McClellan leads the Titans averaging 7.6 rebounds per game followed by sophomore forward Joe Boyd (5.5 rpg). The redshirt senior, who missed his career high by one with 14 rebounds on Jan. 8 at UCR, also tops the Titans shooting 57.6 percent (49-of-85) from the floor. In Fullerton's last 10 games (5-5), McClellan is averaging 8.8 points and 8.6 rebounds while shooting 64.9 percent (37-of-57) from the floor. In addition, during that stretch, he has produced all three Titan double-doubles this season.
JOHNSON SPARK OFF THE BENCH
Lanerryl Johnson came off the bench to average 17.0 points over 4 games (Dec. 30-Jan. 15) while shooting 50.0 percent (13-of-26) from three-point range. He got a start vs. UC Davis on Saturday.
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.
