STOCKTON, Calif. — Latrell Wrightsell Jr. dropped a career-high 27 points and Jalen Harris added 21 as Cal State Fullerton men's basketball defeated Pacific 94-91 in double overtime Friday night at the Alex G. Spanos Center.
Wrightsell Jr. shot 11-of-21 from the floor on the night, including 4-of-9 from deep, to go with eight rebounds, three assists and a pair of steals. Harris knocked down 9-of-11 free throws, including a pair at the end of the second overtime to ice the game, as well as a series of clutch baskets at the end of regulation and the first overtime. He also notched four rebounds and two assists for the Titans.
Vincent Lee had 14 points, nine rebounds and three blocks while Max Jones contributed 12 points and nine boards. Garrison Wade added nine points and five rebounds as the Titans shot 43.8% from the floor on the game.
With the Titans trailing 70-65 and just under a minute remaining in regulation, Lee hammered home a dunk off a Harris miss to bring the Titans within three, 70-67. On the following possession, Max Jones picked up a steal to keep the Titans' hopes alive. Coming out of a timeout, Harris took a three from the left wing and knocked it down with just three seconds left, forcing the first overtime.
HIMOTHY!!! @jalenh2 #DevelopU | #TusksUP pic.twitter.com/iJzB9au7Eh
— Titans Men's Basketball (@FullertonMBB) November 19, 2022
Things remained close throughout the first overtime, as a layup from Pacific's Jordan Ivy-Curry gave the Tigers a two-point lead, 78-76, with 1:34 left. Wade knocked down a pair of free throws to tie things up before Ivy-Curry hit a trey to give the Tigers an 81-78 lead with 48 seconds remaining. Harris then came through again for the Titans, knocking down a three-pointer from the top of the key to tie things back up and force the second overtime.
Clutch gene ��@jalenh2 #DevelopU | #TusksUp pic.twitter.com/CAJO1w8wi3
— Titans Men's Basketball (@FullertonMBB) November 19, 2022
The score remained tied near the end of the second overtime period, with Ivy-Curry hitting a pair of free throws to bring the score to 90-all, with 1:08 left. Harris was then fouled on the ensuing possession and knocked down both of his free throw attempts with 56 seconds left. Ivy-Curry then went 1-of-2 from the line for Pacific after being fouled. Harris was fouled again on the next possession for the Titans, hitting both free throw attempts again to give the Titans a three-point cushion, 94-91, with 19 seconds remaining. The Titans then put together a pair of defensive stops to secure the 94-91 win.
The win was Fullerton's second consecutive double-overtime victory and improves the Titans' record to 3-1 on the season.
Pacific got off to a 23-20 lead in the first half but it was Wrightsell Jr. keeping the Titans in the game. The junior guard had 15 points in the first half. A Garrison Wade 3-pointer with 7:40 left left in the first period put the Titans on top for the first time, 25-23. Following a Pacific three-pointer with 9:15 left in the first half, The Titans' defense held the Tigers to just four points over the final nine minutes of the half, taking a 33-27 lead into the locker room.
.@LJWrightsell is cookin'#DevelopU | #TusksUp pic.twitter.com/6i39xBT8h9
— Titans Men's Basketball (@FullertonMBB) November 19, 2022
The Titans increased their lead to eight, 46-38, in the second half following a layup from Jones a Lathaniel Bastian free throw. But the Tigers fought back, scoring 14 of the next 17 points to take a 52-49 lead. Pacific extended its lead to 59-51 before a Harris layup brought the Titans within six, 59-53, with 6:34 left. The Tigers maintained their lead for much of the remaining second half, going up 70-65 with under a minute left before the Titans mounted their comeback.
Up next, the Titans return home to take on Westcliff on Tuesday, Nov. 22, at Titan Gym. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. PT.
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