CHICO – The Chico State men’s basketball team showed Sunday that this season’s edition of the Wildcats can excel on both sides of the ball. After the offense racked up 84 points in Saturday’s season opener against Alaska-Fairbanks, the ’Cats defense held Academy of Art to the lowest point total by a Chico State opponent in nearly three years, wrapping up the annual Mac Martin Tournament with a 83-36 victory over the Urban Knights at Acker Gym.
Sunday’s win pushed the Wildcats’ record to 2-0 on the season, while Academy of Art dropped to 0-2. The 36 points by the Urban Knights were just two more than the 34 scored by Pacific Union when Chico State beat the Pioneers by 53 back on Dec. 11, 2008.
Damario Sims, who was named to the Mac Martin All-Tournament team, led the Wildcats Sunday with 18 points, shooting 8-for-13 from the field while grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out two assists. Rashad Parker came off the Chico State bench to score 12 points in 15 minutes of action, while Tournament MVP Amir Carraway knocked down three 3-pointers and finished with 10 points in just 13 minutes of work. Jay Flores doled out five assists and grabbed two steals for the victorious Wildcats, which held Academy of Art to just 24 percent shooting on the afternoon. William Overton, Jr., another All-Tournament selection, paced the Urban Knights with 12 points.
Chico State set the tone right out of the gate, scoring the game’s first 11 points, highlighted by two Carraway 3-pointers and a bank shot by Sims. Academy of Art answered with five unanswered points, only to see the Wildcats go on a 13-3 run – Sims and Sean Park nailing 3-pointers during the stretch – to extend their advantage to 24-8. Flores drained a three-pointer at the end of the period to give Chico State a 34-14 halftime lead.
It was all Wildcats in the second half, as Chico State shot a collective 57 percent from the field and led at one point by 50. After Ivan Prema’s 3-pointer pulled Academy of Art to within 49-21, the Wildcats outscored the Urban Knights 32-10 over the next 10 minutes to put the game well out of reach. Parker scored 10 points in the period, with Sims adding nine and Jordan Barton eight as every Chico State player chalked up some minutes. Barton’s layup with 36 seconds left officially put the bow on the Wildcats’ convincing 83-36 victory and a sweep of their Mac Martin Tournament opponents.
BOX SCORE
Chico State returns to action Saturday night, hosting the 0-3 Pacific Union Pioneers in a non-conference matchup. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. at Acker Gym.
Alaska-Fairbanks 88, San Francisco State 85
With 2:17 left, Jarrett Miller snapped an 81-all tie with a jumper and two free throws to give Alaska-Fairbanks an 85-81 lead. San Francisco State missed five critical free throws down the stretch, and the Nanooks held on for the 88-85 victory to even their season record to 1-1, while the Gators fell to 1-1. Stefan Tica knocked down eight 3-pointers on the afternoon and led Alaska-Fairbanks with 30 points; San Francisco State’s James Albright was 13-for-20 from the field and led all scorers with 32 points to go along with 10 rebounds.
BOX SCORE
Mac Martin All-Tournament Team
William Overton, Jr. – Academy of Art
James Albright – San Francisco State
Nefi Perdomo – San Francisco State
Stefan Tica – Alaska-Fairbanks
Damario Sims – Chico State
Tournament MVP – Amir Carraway, Chico State
