Five games into the 2022–23 California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) schedule, the Chico State men's basketball team finds itself squarely in the mix in the upper half of the conference standings. The Wildcats are about to take a two-week break from CCAA competition, but before they adjourn for the holidays, they'll play a non-conference game Sunday afternoon at Acker Gym against the Pioneers of Pacific Union College. Tipoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.
Fans can follow the action 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 men'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 is 4-5 on the season, and tied for fifth place in the CCAA with a 3-2 conference record. The Wildcats get one last helping of home cooking before the holiday break, and are looking to get back in the win column after a split of last week's tough road trip to Arcata and Rohnert Park. The 'Cats topped Cal Poly Humboldt Thursday 116-112 in overtime, but dropped a 78-69 decision Saturday to Sonoma State.
The 'Cats are scoring at an impressive clip so far in 2022–23, with the team's 75.8 points-per-game average ranked third in the CCAA. Defensively, Chico State has given up 79.1 points a contest.
Individually, Jojo Murphy—the reigning CCAA Player of the Week—is averaging a team-high 20.6 points a game and is the second leading scorer in the conference. The freshman is also second in the CCAA in free throw percentage (83.3 percent), third in 3-point shooting percentage (44.2 percent), sixth in field goal percentage (50.7 percent), and ninth in 3-pointers (19).
Joshua Hamilton is averaging 12.9 points a game and is among the conference leaders in assists (35) and free throw percentage (80.6 percent). Evan Oliver contributes 11.9 points per game to the 'Cats' attack, while Justin Vigil (9.3 ppg) is Chico State's top rebounder and ranks 11th in the CCAA, averaging 6.3 boards a contest.
Pacific Union College, a member of the NAIA's Cal Pac Conference, enters Sunday's contest with the Wildcats with a 1-10 season record. The Pioneers have lost their last two games; the most recent a 99-90 setback at the hands of Cal Maritime. Pacific Union's lone win of the season was a 99-92 overtime victory December 1 against Westcliff University.
The Pioneers average 75.8 points a game on offense, but have struggled on the defensive end so far this season, surrendering 97.3 points a contest.
Pacific Union is led by a trio of double-digit scorers: Junior guard/forward Harkaran Sidhu (11.6 points a game), junior point guard Anthony Lopez (11.3 points a game), and senior guard/forward Sterlen Thomas (11.1 points a game).
Sunday marks the ninth time Chico State and Pacific Union have squared off on the hardwood. The Wildcats have won the previous eight meetings, including last season's 87-61 victory November 23 at Acker Gym.
