It's appointment basketball at Acker Gym this weekend. The Chico State men host their longest-running rival, Humboldt State, Friday night. Conference co-leader Cal Poly Pomona comes to town for Senior Night on Saturday. All the while, the Wildcats – up to fifth in Wednesday's NCAA West Region rankings – will be hoping to build upon their already strong NCAA Championship Tournament resume.
Both games are scheduled to tip at approximately 7:30 p.m., following the women's games.
Chico State seniors Nate Appel, Giordano Estrada, Rashad Parker, Amir Carraway and Sean Park will be honored prior to Saturday's game. Parker, Park and Carraway are each in their fifth year in the program and Appel his fourth. They were all part of the Wildcats' 2011-12 California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) title run, back-to-back trips to the NCAA Championship Tournament, and five consecutive postseason appearances. The quartet has helped lead Chico State to 63 wins over the past three seasons – second most in school history over a three-year span and four shy of the school record.
Estrada, a transfer from Sacramento State has helped the Wildcats raise the scoring average by seven points per game this season. He leads the team with 54 3-pointers – fourth most in the CCAA – and ranks sixth in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio.
Chico State, 19-5 overall, has already locked up third place in the CCAA standings at 15-5. Cal Poly Pomona is the only team on Chico State's schedule it has yet to beat this season. The Broncos are 20-4 overall, 18-2 in the CCAA, and ranked No. 17 in the nation and No. 2 in the West.
Cal State San Bernardino sits atop the regional rankings, followed by Cal Poly Pomona, Cal Baptist, Seattle Pacific, Chico State, Dixie State, Western Washington, Dominican, Cal State Stanislaus and San Francisco State. The champions of the CCAA, Pacific West Conference and Great Northwest Athletic Conference tournaments will earn automatic berths into the NCAA Championship Tournament. Five more teams from the West will receive at-large bids.
The Wildcats (listed first among "others receiving votes" in this week's top-25 poll) and Humboldt State first played during the 1993-34 season and have squared off at least once every season since. Already eliminated from postseason consideration the Lumberjacks (11-15 overall and 6-14 in the CCAA) will be playing for pride on Friday.
All of this weekend's basketball action will be broadcast live on AM-1290 KPAY. Livestats and a link to the internet broadcast are available at www.chicowildcats.com.
MILESTONE WATCH
A win Friday would make the Wildcats a program-best 20-5 for the third time, matching the 1954-55 and 1992-93 teams. Only the 1992-93 team won 21 of its first 26…With 1,160 career points, Park needs 31 more to catch former teammate Damario Sims for sixth on the school's career scoring list…With 1,021 points, Carraway is 13 shy of catching another former teammate, Roderick Hawkins, for 13th on the career scoring list…With 578 career rebounds, junior Jordan Semple needs 19 more to catch Jim Schreiner for sixth on the career list. Already the school's career-record holder in blocked shots, Semple is six shy of the century mark…Another former teammate of Park and Semple, Josh Jackson, is part of a three-way tie for 10th on the school's career steals list. Park needs three swipes to catch him and Semple four.
