Saturday, Dec. 8
vs. Cal State Monterey Bay (3-4, 0-2 CCAA)
Pioneer Gym
7:30 p.m.
Live Stats

HAYWARD, Calif. – After four straight road games, the Cal State East Bay men's basketball team is finally back in the friendly confines of Pioneer Gym this weekend. The Pioneers (2-3, 1-1 CCAA) will host the Otters of Cal State Monterey Bay, their CCAA traveling partner, in their conference home opener on Saturday night. This will be the final home game of the calendar year for East Bay and therefore the last chance for local fans to see the Pioneer men play for over a month. The team has breaks for final exams and the holidays in addition to playing four straight road games. Saturday's contest will also be the last CCAA game until Dec. 30, when the Pioneers once again take on Cal State Monterey Bay.

WEEKEND RECAP
East Bay came up one basket short of a perfect 2-0 start to conference play last week when Brandon Glanz's layup at the buzzer went in to give Sonoma State a one-point victory last Saturday. The Pioneers still managed a 1-1 road trip, thanks to an 80-76 win at San Francisco State on Friday night. It was East Bay's first victory over the Gators in three years, snapping a six-game losing streak.

Gabe Kindred led the team with 16.5 ppg over the weekend. Senior forward Jurrell Turner averaged 12.0 ppg on 7-of-13 from the field (53.8 percent) and 9-of-12 from the line (75 percent) as East Bay's most efficient scorer. Jacari Whitfield also put up double figures in the two games, scoring 10.5 ppg. Junior forward Ryan Hebebrand made two starts, led the team with 5.0 rpg, scored 14 total points, and didn't miss a shot from the field, going 4-for-4.

TRIPLE THREAT
Newcomer Kindred has been filling up the score sheet in the early part of this season, and also providing the team with a spark. He scored a season-high 20 points against the Seawolves on 9-of-16 shooting, notching 10 points in the final 10 minutes as the Pioneers attempted to pull off the comeback. An excellent rebounder for a guard, Kindred also pulled in team-high seven boards against SF State. For the season, the junior leads the team in scoring (13.8 ppg) and assists (3.6 apg), and ranks second in rebounding (4.8 rpg).

LET IT RAIN
Whitfield, sophomore guard and reigning CCAA Freshman of the Year, shot nothing but three-pointers on Friday in the win over SF State. He was 5-for-8 and scored a season-high 15 points, including a huge three that gave East Bay a six-point lead with under a minute to go. The five three-pointers is a career-best for Whitfield, topping his previous mark of four, which also came against SF State. For the season, the San Francisco native is second on the Pioneers with 11.6 ppg and 2.6 apg, and he leads the team with 11 three-pointers.

DEFENDING THE ARC
East Bay has done an admirable job preventing teams from beating them from behind the three-point line this year. They lead the conference as a team, holding opponents to 29.7 percent shooting from long distance.

SECOND CHANCES
The Pioneers haven't shot the ball quite as well as they would like thus far, but they have done an impressive job creating second opportunities for their offense. Currently East Bay ranks second in the CCAA with 12.8 offensive rpg. The team is led by Hebebrand, who sits fifth in the conference averaging 2.8 offensive boards.

SCOUTING THE OTTERS
Cal State Monterey Bay enters the weekend in search of its first conference win after losing on the road to SF State and Sonoma State last week. Although they're third in the CCAA in scoring average, the Otters' real strength is on the defensive end. They lead the conference in defensive rebounding and rank second in opponents' field goal percentage. This could prove to be a tough matchup for the Pioneers, who rank next-to-last in the CCAA in rebounding margin. Freshman guard Alex Fertig, shooting 45.8 percent on three-pointers, is CSUMB's top scorer at 15.0 ppg. Senior guard Brandon Ward is the only other Otter to average double figures at 12.1 ppg, and he also leads the team in assists. Senior forward Derrick Anderson puts up 9.3 ppg and pulls in 6.3 rebounds. The Otters will visit Holy Names on Thursday before continuing CCAA play against the Pioneers. East Bay won both meetings between in the two teams in 2011-12.

ZUMBATHON
Prior to Saturday's men's and women's basketball doubleheader, Pioneer Athletics is hosting “Zumbathon” at 4 p.m. in Pioneer Gym. The event supports “Zumba for Wishes” with all proceeds going to the Make A Wish Foundation. Participants will receive two free tickets to the Pioneer women's basketball game at 5:30 p.m. and get to participate in a halftime performance with Claudia Lira and the KO1 Fitness Zumba instructors. If interested, please click here for more information.