HAYWARD, Calif. -- After a break of nearly two weeks, the Cal State East Bay men's basketball team is back in action this weekend with a pair of home games at Pioneer Gym. The Pioneers (5-5, 2-2 CCAA) kick off 2014 on Friday night against Cal Poly Pomona, the defending conference champion. The following night, they welcome in Humboldt State, which is still in search of its first CCAA victory this season. Both games will be broadcast live at
pioneerwebtv.com.
DECEMBER SPLITS
In the 2013 portion of their schedule, the Pioneers split their non-conference games (3-3) as well as their CCAA contests (2-2). They split the first weekend of conference play, beating Cal State Dominguez Hills and falling narrowly to Cal State L.A. Then they split a pair of games with Cal State Monterey Bay on back-to-back Saturdays leading up to the holiday break.
An even record is an accomplishment for a team that went 7-19 in 2012-13, but the Pioneers will look to get on the plus side of .500 this week at home, where they are 4-1 on the season.
TRIPLE THREATS
East Bay is the third-highest scoring team in the CCAA at 79.8 points per game, but they rank in the bottom half of the conference in both field goal percentage (.448) and rebounding margin (-3.3). What they do as well as any team is knock down three-pointers and get to the free throw line.
The Pioneers rank first in the CCAA in three-point shooting (39.1 percent) and second in free throw shooting (72.6 percent). They've also made the most long balls and the second-most foul shots in the conference.
Gabe Kindred has been East Bay's offensive leader all season, and the senior ranks fifth in the conference in scoring at 19.6 points per game. He leads the CCAA in made three throws and ranks second in three-point percentage (.476).
The only player Kindred trails in that category is teammate
Nick Grieves, who's hitting from long distance at a 54.3 percent clip. The junior transfer is averaging 10.1 points per game in his first season in Hayward.
Senior
Mark Samuels is the team's second-leading scorer (13.3 ppg) and ranks fourth in the CCAA in total assists (36). For his career, the Berekley native ranks third all-time in school history with 1,151 points, sixth with 251 assists, and ninth with 343 rebounds.
Fellow senior
Ryan Hebebrand has really stepped it up that past few games. He's the Pioneers' leading rebounder and ranks fifth in the conference at 7.0 per game. Hebebrand notched 9 points and 8 rebounds in the win over the Otters, 9 points and 12 boards in the win over Menlo, and his first double-double of the year with 13 points and 12 rebounds in the loss at CSUMB.
BRONCO BREAKDOWN
Cal Poly Pomona has won three straight, including two victories over Humboldt State. They're the top rebounding team in the CCAA, and so far they rank second in both points allowed and opponents field goal percentage. Senior guard DeRonn Scott leads the team in scoring (15.7 points per game) and assists (3.2 per game). Sophomore foward Jordan Faison (13.5 ppg, .545 FG pct.) is the Broncos' top rebounder at 5.8 per game.
SCOUTING THE JACKS
Humboldt State fell to both Cal State San Bernardino and UC San Diego before dropping close games at home and on the road to Cal Poly Pomona. The Jacks are the highest scoring team in the conference at 84.9 points per game and they shoot 50.7 percent as a team. They also allow the most points per game of any CCAA team (80.0). HSU has four players averaging in double figures, highlighted by junior David Howard, who leads the team in scoring (18.7 ppg) and rebounding (8.7 per game).
