HAYWARD, Calif. -- The Cal State East Bay men's basketball team held on for a crucial 77-74 win over visiting Cal State Monterey Bay on Saturday night. It's the first victory of the season against California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) competition for the Pioneers (3-5, 1-2 CCAA).
Three senior guards scored in double figures for East Bay, led by
Jacari Whitfield with 22 points. The Pioneers out-shot the Otters, 46.7 percent to 45.2 percent, from the field, and they won despite committing 10 more fouls and attempting 14 fewer free throws than their opponents.
"This was a physical, fast-paced game and both teams had great tempo," said head coach
Gus Argenal. "Coach Bishop has a talented team, and they competed hard. Both squads made plays down the stretch. I'm really proud of our seniors -- Jacari, Cody, and Jarred. They gave up great leadership and energy when we needed it."
The Pioneers held the lead for most of the first half by shooting 55.2 percent from the field as a team. They knocked down four three-pointers in the opening frame, including back-to-back long balls by Whitfield to extend their lead to 12 with five minutes left in the half.
The Otters made a late run before halftime to cut their deficit to single digits, taking advantage of eight second-chance points off nine first-half offensive rebounds. CSUMB briefly made it a three-point game before
Cody Kale scored his 10th point of the half on a little floater in the lane, sending the Pioneers to the break with a 40-35 lead.
Monterey Bay quickly cut East Bay's lead to one coming out of halftime, and the game was back-and-forth the rest of the way. The Pioneers had a 53-49 advantage after
Juawnn Springfield scored off the glass, but then CSUMB's Evan Zeller got red hot from outside. Zeller scored 10 straight points to put the Otters up six, their biggest lead of the game, with eight minutes left.
That's when the momentum turned back towards the CSUEB bench. The Pioneers answered right back as Whitfield buried another three, and
Nick Grieves and
Jarred Jourdan converted layups on consecutive possessions to tie the score back up at 62-62. The next time down the court, Whitfield once again hit nothing but net from beyond the arc, and East Bay had the lead back. Zeller fouled out with five minutes left, and then Kale scored two straight buckets to put the Pioneers up 71-63.
The home team made enough free throws in the final three minutes to hang on for the three-point win. They finished the game 14-for-19 from the stripe (73.7 percent) and 7-for-20 from long distance (35 percent).
Whitfield led all scorers with his season-high 22 points. He was 7-for-13 from the floor, including 4-for-8 from long range, and also led the team with three steals.
Kale notched 16 points on an efficient 7-for-10 shooting, his highest scoring output as a Pioneer. Jourdan also reached double figures with 12 points, going 6-for-6 on foul shots and grabbing five rebounds. The senior is now 21-for-24 from the line this season (87.5 percent), which paces the team.
Patrick Marr led the squad with 10 rebounds and scored five points. The freshman was a key factor on defense for the Pioneers, taking several charges and protecting the paint impressively along with
Jack Pasquini,
Darrick McIntosh, and
Kyle Frakes.
Pasquini finished with seven points and eight rebounds, while Frakes posted four points and five boards. Grieves added five points, and Springfield scored four off the bench.
"Jacari put us on his back and refused to let us break," Argenal added. "Patrick took four charges and had 10 rebounds and provided toughness in the interior. Jack had another great game on the glass and came up with some crucial stops in the post. This was our best 40 minutes of basketball so far, and we're getting better as a team."
East Bay is back in action next Saturday, Dec. 20 against these very same Otters. The Pioneers travel south to Seaside for a 3 p.m. tip-off at Cal State Monterey Bay.
