SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA – Steve McClellan had another double-double for Cal State Fullerton Thursday night but David Nwaba scored 18 points and Joel Awich had 17 to lead Cal Poly SLO to a 66-55 Big West Conference victory over the Titans.
McClellan had 12 points and 12 rebounds to lead Fullerton (8-11, 0-4), which lost its fourth in a row. Kennedy Esume matched his Titan high with nine points.
Brian Bennett made all five of his shots for the Mustangs (9-8, 2-3) on his way to 15 points.
Good defense and poor shooting were dominant. Cal Poly shot 43 percent from the floor but was only 2-of-16 from 3-point range. Fullerton shot 39 percent and was 3 of 16 from the arc. Both teams were cold at the foul line – Cal Poly was 16-of-25 and Fullerton made only 6-of-14.
The Mustangs had two big runs. An 8-0 spurt late in the first half erased Fullerton's only lead of the game, turning a 17-16 deficit into a 24-17 lead. They then exploded out of the locker room, running off 13 unanswered points for a 39-24 advantage after McClellan's hoop to open the period.
As they have done in all of their Big West losses, the Titans erased most of a double-digit deficit
They got within five points at 53-48 with 5:25 to play after a Jamar Akoh bucket and an Alex Harris 3-pointer. But the Mustangs got consecutive 3-point plays from Nwaba and Awich for a 59-48 lead and Fullerton never got closer than 9 the rest of the way.
Fullerton is now 1-8 on the road while Cal Poly is 4-1 at home. It was only its second game in the Mott Athletics Center in 46 days.
The Titans complete their Central Coast trip with a 4 p.m. game Saturday at UC Santa Barbara (9-9, 2-2), which beat UC Riverside, 83-75, Thursday night.