A grind-it-out, gritty victory against Stanislaus State put the Chico State men's basketball team back in the win column and went a long way to getting the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) slate off to an encouraging start. This week the Wildcats attempt to build on that positive momentum when they host conference foes Cal State LA Thursday at 7:30 p.m. and Cal State San Marcos Saturday at 3 p.m. at Acker Gym.
Fans can follow the action of both games locally on KPAY Sports 1290-AM, with Mike Baca and Mike Wessel's broadcast simulcast on the Internet. Live Stats and live streaming video are also available online, with links located on the Wildcat Athletics homepage and the women's basketball schedule page. Accessing the live video stream requires a monthly subscription fee that grants users access to every CCAA event on the network, home and away.
Chico State enters the week 2-3 on the season, but more importantly, 1-0 in CCAA play thanks to last Saturday's 64-55 win over Stanislaus. The Wildcats' defense—long a trademark of Greg Clink-coached teams—turned in its best performance of the young 2022–23 campaign, holding the Warriors to under 38 percent shooting, forcing 10 turnovers, and winning the rebounding battle 50-38.
Offensively, the 'Cats are averaging 69.8 points a game on the season, while on defense has given up 75.6 points a contest.
Individually, Jojo Murphy leads Chico State in scoring, with his 14.8 points per game average 11th best in the CCAA. Right behind Murphy is Joshua Hamilton, ranked 13th in the conference at 14 points a contest. Brennan Wheeler (9.0 ppg) has drained a team-high 10 3-pointers, while Justin Vigil is the Wildcats' top rebounder, hauling in 6.0 boards a game.
Cal State LA, Chico State's Thursday night opponent, is 3-4 so far in 2022–23 and 0-1 in CCAA play. The Golden Eagles split a pair of contests last week, beating Fresno Pacific 83-73 on November 22 before falling in their CCAA conference opener Saturday to Cal State San Marcos 78-64.
Seven games into the season, Cal State LA is averaging 66.6 points a game on offense, while on the defensive end the Golden Eagles are surrendering 72 points a contest.
Sophomore guard Dominic Escobar is averaging 13.8 points a game for Cal State LA, with sophomore guard Shane Bell contributing 13.1 points a contest and a team-high 12 3-pointers.
Chico State won the lone meeting with Cal State LA last season, besting the Golden Eagles 82-65 February 17 in Los Angeles. Since 1987, the Wildcats hold a 26-21 lead in the all-time series between the two teams.
Cal State San Marcos, which visits Chico Saturday following a Thursday tilt in Turlock against Stanislaus State, is 1-4 on the season, but the Cougars' lone win was in their CCAA opener last Saturday against Cal State LA.
The Cal San Marcos offense is producing an average of 65.4 points per game, while defensively the Cougars have given up 70.4 points a contest.
San Marcos boasts the CCAA's top scorer, Greg Milton III. The senior guard is averaging 22.2 points a game, shooting over 53 percent from the field, and leads the Cougars with nine 3-pointers. Senior forward Joel Mensah is averaging 8.4 points a game and has pulled down a team-high 7.0 rebounds a contest.
San Marcos won two of the three meetings with the Wildcats last season, including an 80-66 victory in the CCAA Tournament. Chico State leads the all-time series, though, holding a 7-5 advantage over the Cougars.
