Friday, Jan. 24
7:30 p.m. vs. Sonoma State (2-12, 1-9 CCAA)
Saturday, Jan. 25
7:30 p.m. vs. San Francisco State (8-5, 6-4 CCAA)
Pioneer Gym • Hayward, Calif.
Live Stats • Live Video
HAYWARD, Calif. -- After four straight road games, the Cal State East Bay men's basketball team is back in the friendly confines of Pioneer Gym this weekend for a pair of crucial CCAA contests. On Friday night, they welcome in Sonoma State, and on Saturday night, they host San Francisco State in the annual "Battle of the Bay" to conclude CSUEB's weeklong
Homecoming 2014 celebration.
WEEKLY RECAP
Last weekend, the Pioneers made the trip up Highway 99 to take on two red-hot squads. On Friday, they fell to Chico State 83-75 as the Wildcats won their 17th straight home game. Senior
Gabe Kindred scored a career-high 30 points in the loss, the only time this season an East Bay player has reached 30 in a game.
The following night, the Pioneers dropped a heartbreaker at Cal State Stanislaus, which won its fourth game in a row. Kindred and
Jacari Whitfield posted 19 points each, and freshman
Kyle Frakes set a career high with 18, but East Bay came up short in the second overtime period, 89-81.
PIONEER POINTS
East Bay enters the weekend as the third-highest scoring team in the CCAA at 77.4 points per game. They also rank second in the conference in both three-point percentage (.374) and free throw shooting (.742).
Kindred has scored in double figures in every game and ranks third in the CCAA in scoring at 20.5 points per game during league play. He also leads the conference in three point shooting at 50.0 percent (33-for-66) as well as made free throws with 113 -- just 12 shy of the single-season school record.
Junior
Nick Grieves ranks second in the CCAA in three-point percentage (.480). He and Whitfield are also tied for second in total three-pointers made with 36 each. Senior
Ryan Hebebrand entered the weekend 6th in the CCAA in rebounding (6.7 per game).
Senior
Mark Samuels is fifth in the conference in assists at 3.4 per game. He also ranks third all-time in school history with 1,247 career points, fifth with 270 assists, and eighth with 369 rebounds.
STANDINGS WATCH
The Pioneers enter the weekend tied for seventh place in the
CCAA Standings at 3-7. Currently Sonoma State is in last place, and SF State occupies the sixth and final postseason spot at 6-4, so this weekend's games are extremely significant for East Bay to potentially gain ground.
SCOUTING THE SEAWOLVES
Cal State East Bay is 4-4 against Sonoma State since joining the CCAA in 2009. The Seawolves won the most recent meeting, 87-70, last February in Hayward. SSU ranks 11th in the CCAA in scoring offense (65.7 ppg) and sixth in scoring defense (69.2 ppg allowed), and along with the Pioneers, they're one of the top three-point shooting teams in the conference (.357). Justin Herold leads the team in scoring (14.3 ppg), rebounding (5.8 rpg), and field goal percentage (.598).
GUAGING THE GATORS
East Bay is 1-7 against SF State since 2009, with the lone win coming last year at The Swamp. SFSU has won four straight meetings in Hayward. The Gators rank sixth in the CCAA in scoring offense (74.5 ppg) and fifth in defense (70.4 ppg allowed), and this game matches up the top two free throw shooting teams in the conference (the Gators shoot .771). SF State has quite a bit of size in the frontcourt, and they're led offensively by the top scorer in the CCAA. Nefi Perdomo is averaging 22.1 points per game and also leads the team in assists at 3.2 per contest. He's shooting 51.4 percent from the field and is tops the conference in made three-pointers (42).
