HAYWARD, Calif. — Four Cal State East Bay players scored in double figures in a 100-77 rout of the Simpson University Red Hawks on Saturday at Pioneer Gymnasium. The win improves the Pioneers' overall record to 4-4.
This was the Pioneers second victory over the Red Hawks after the Pioneers defeated Simpson 86-48 at Chico State's Mac Martin Invitational Nov. 27.
The first half was closely contested for the first eight minutes until junior
Jalen Richard hit a three-pointer to put the Pioneers up 23-20 that started an 11-0 run that would put the Pioneers in-front by 11 with 9:55 left in the opening half. The Pioneers would build their lead to as high as 18 points in the first half and go to the locker room with that same 18 point lead, 57-39.
The second half saw the Pioneers lead by as many as 33 when junior
Pierre Carter dunked to make it 81-48 with 9:47 left before eventually settling on a 23-point non-conference win.
"I was very impressed with the way Simpson attacked us from the beginning," said Cal State East Bay Head Coach,
Gus Argenal. "They punched us in the mouth and forced us to respond. I felt like we made a concerted effort to rebound aggressively and share the ball offensively.
Junior
Jalen Richard led the Pioneers in scoring, netting 19 points on 6-10 shooting and 4-7 on three-pointers. Richard's contributions didn't stop there, as he had four rebounds, three steals, and two blocks.
Senior
Ryan Okwudibonye scored 15 points on 5-8 shooting, including 5-5 from the charity-stripe and had eight rebounds to tie senior
Jack Pasquini for the team-lead. Pasquini drained 17 points on 7-10 from the field. He also had two steals and two blocks.
The Pioneer bench was dominant, outscoring the Red Hawks 36-6 and Argenal took notice.
"We had some players step-up and give us sparks off the bench, especially Tre (Mauldin) and Pom (
Paramvir Singh)."
Senior
Tre Mauldin had eight points, four rebounds, and a team-high five assists in 23 minutes. Singh, a junior, scored 10 points and dished-out four assists in 16 minutes of action.
Cal State East Bay shot a season-high 60% (36-60) from the field to Simpson's 47.2% (25-53). The Pioneers also set season-highs in blocked shots (eight) and points with 100. The Pioneers won the rebounding battle with the Red Hawks, 36-21.
"We now have a couple days to prepare for Pomona and make sure that our defensive mindset is right," said Argenal.
East Bay returns to CCAA play on Tuesday against an outstanding Cal Poly Pomona team, ranked No. 5 in the nation, at Pioneer Gymnasium.Tip-off is set for 7:30 P.M.
