The Chico State men’s basketball team will open up an important weekend Friday night in Hayward (home of Val’s Burgers) with a meaty matchup against Cal State East Bay. The Wildcats, 12-4 overall and in a four-way tie for third place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) at 6-4, will then head south to Seaside to face Cal State Monterey Bay on Saturday. If the Wildcats approach those games with the same focus and ferocity as they would a Val’s burger, they’ll give themselves a good chance to come away with two very important road wins.
Both games are scheduled to tip off at 7:30 p.m. and can be heard on local radio (KPAY 1290-AM) and online at www.chicowildcats.com. Live Stats will also be available through the Wildcat Athletics website.
The Wildcats, winners of five of their last six games, are allowing just 57.8 points per game, the sixth lowest in the nation and the program’s lowest since the 1950-51 season. But they’ll have their hands full with a Cal State East Bay team averaging 76.4 points per game and 8.8 threes per outing. Formally Cal State Hayward, East Bay enters the game at 7-6 overall and just a half game behind the Wildcats in the conference standings at 5-4.
A talented trio of guards leads the Pioneers. Mark Samuels is averaging a team high 15.7 points per game, mostly coming on drives to the basket. He’s made just seven 3-pointers on the season. Jason Smith is his opposite, ranking third in the nation with 3.8 made 3-pointers per game. He’s made just five baskets inside the 3-point line this season and averages 13.4 points per game. Roshun Wynne is averaging 12.8 points per game and 2.6 steals, the 19th most in the nation.
Cal State Monterey Bay (2-11, 1-8 CCAA) will attempt to snap an eight-game losing skid when it opens the weekend at home against Cal State Stanislaus on Friday night. But the Wildcats are not expecting an easy go of it in Seaside. In fact, up until two seasons ago when the rallied from 17 points down at the half to win on Jay Flores’ layin at the buzzer, the Wildcats had never won in five tries there. Last season, the Wildcats led from wire to wire but had to hang on for a 68-66 win.
Brandon Ward and Derrick Anderson lead the Otters in scoring at 13.7 and 13.1 points per game, respectively. Kevin Loustale, a product of Chico High School and Shasta College is pitching in 7.9 points and a team-high 6.8 rebounds per game.
Flores has had the hot hand for the Wildcats of late, knocking down 11 of his last 17 three-point attempts while averaging 15.3 points per game over the last four. Damario Sims leads a balanced scoring attack at 10.8 points per game. Amir Carraway is second at 10.4. Sean Park, who averaged nearly 20 points per game in the Wildcats’ two matchups with Cal State Monterey Bay last season, is averaging 9.8 points per game. Flores is chipping in 8.9 points and leads the team in assists and steals.
Center Jason Conrad and freshman Jordan Semple have also been making huge contributions of late. Conrad blocked a career high four shots last Friday night and came back with a career high 12 points last Saturday. Semple boasts per-40-minute averages of 14.2 points, 12.9 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and a steal over the last 10 games.
The Wildcats defense has been hot all season, not allowing a single team to reach its season scoring average in regulation. If they do that twice more, they should have a good chance of coming away with a sweep. This weekend’s opponents are a combined 1-15 when scoring fewer than 80 points this season. Cal State East Bay is 1-6 and Cal State Monterey Bay is 0-9.
The Wildcats have yet to allow 80 points this season and have given up more than 70 just twice.
