HAYWARD, Calif. -- The most exciting week of the basketball season is upon us, as the Cal State East Bay men's basketball team returns home for a pair of games this weekend to cap off Homecoming 2015. The Pioneers welcome in local rivals Sonoma State on Friday night, followed by San Francisco State on Saturday night.

Both games will have live video broadcasts available at PioneerWebTV.com. Friday's contest will be preceded by the annual tailgate BBQ and Athletics garage sale in the Gym lobby. Saturday's haltime festivities will feature the announcement of the 2015 Homecoming Court winners.  

WALKING WOUNDED
After losing several student-athletes to season-endoing injuries, the Pioneers are down to eight healthy players on their roster -- and only one of them was in the starting lineup for the first game of the season. Despite the adversity, the squad has coninuted to improve its defensive play and has a chance to play spoiler this weekend against a pair of schools on the bubble of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) playoffs. 

WEEKLY RECAP
Last weekend, East Bay traveled south to visit two of the top teams in the league. On Friday night, they hung tough with UC San Diego, falling 65-54 in front of a huge crowd of nearly 3,400 on Spirit Night in La Jolla. The next evening in Pomona, Jacari Whitfield led all scorers with 17 points, by the Pioneers were defeated 73-48 by first-place Cal Poly Pomona. 

PIONEER POINTS
During CCAA play this season, the Pioneers rank second among the 12 schools in offensive rebounds, third in three-point field goals, and fourth in blocks.

Whitfield knocked down seven long balls this past weekend, including a 5-for-13 performance at CPP, to extend his own school record. The San Francisco native has now made 173 for his career, with six regular season games remaining. 

Whitfield also leads the Pioneers and ranks third among CCAA players with 74 assists for the season. He has now dished out 305 assists in his four-year career, which is the third-most in program history.

Cody Kale reached double figures in scoring for the sixth time this year with 14 points against the Broncos. The senior guard is leading the squad in field goal percentage (.423) in his first season donning the red and black.

Current CCAA Standings
CCAA Statistical Leaders

SCOUTING THE SEAWOLVES
Sonoma State has lost three in a row and seven of its last eight games soince defeating the Pioneers 71-51 in Rohnert Park. The Seawolves lead the CCAA in three-point shooting (.392) and free throw shooting (.766), but they're 2-6 on the road this season. James Davis (16.1 ppg, 41% 3FG) and JJ Mina (12.9 ppg, 5.2 rpg) are the squad's top two scorers. Cal State East Bay is 5-6 against SSU since joining the conference in 2009-10, with the Pioneers winning last season in Hayward.

GUAGING THE GATORS
SF State is also struggling recently, having lost six of its last eight games. The Gators are also winless on the road this season (0-8). They rank second in the league in steals, and fourth in rebound margin, but they're just 11th in points per game (59.9) and ninth in field goal percentage (.429). Senior Udon Osakue (15.1 ppg, 5.4 rpg) is SFSU's leadong scorer and rebounder, and Bren Haley is second in the CCAA in assists. CSUEB is just 1-10 against the Gators as members of the conference, and they were defeated 70-57 when the teams met on Jan. 2.