November 18, 2009

SEASIDE, Calif. - The Cal State Monterey Bay men's and women's basketball teams heads north to compete in tournaments.








Game Notes No. 13

MEN'S BASKETBALL Sodexo Tip-Off Classic Hosted by Seattle Pacific Game 2 Friday, Nov. 20 CSUMB vs. Western Washington 3 PM Game 3 Saturday, Nov. 21 CSUMB vs. Seattle Pacific 7 PM Live Stats: Click Here Radio: Click Here (Saturday Only)

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Phoenix Inn & Suites Invitational Hosted by Western Oregon Game 1 Friday, Nov. 20 CSUMB vs. Western Oregon 4 PM Game 2 Saturday, Nov. 21 CSUMB vs. Northwest Nazarene 1 PM Live Stats: Click Here Radio: Click Here (Friday Only)

MEN'S BASKETBALL
OPENING TIP:  The Otters compete in the Sodexo Tip-Off Classic hosted by Seattle Pacific University on Nov. 20-21 at the Brougham Pavilion. CSUMB opens with Western Washington on Friday, Nov. 20 at 3 p.m. before taking on the tournament host, SPU, at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 21.

PAST WEEKEND: CSUMB opened the 2009-10 campaign with a 66-52 victory over the Academy of Art Urban Knights on Sunday, Nov. 15 at the Otter Sports Center. Senior guard #Jamelle Tolliver# led the Otters with 16 points and senior guard #Keith Wilson# chipped in 12 points.  Wilson led all players with nine rebounds and three steals.  Senior #Sean Jergo# and junior #Warren Freeman# contributed eight points apiece. The Otters controlled most of the game while out-rebounding the Urban Knights, 43-34, and had a big advantage by going to the free throw line 33 times to AAU's 16.

COACH BISHOP'S CORNER: “This upcoming weekend will be our first real road test of the season.  We are playing two very good teams that are regionally ranked.  Western has a veteran team returning and has already played five games so far.  They are an athletic team that loves to get up and down the floor so it should make for a very fast paced game. We played Seattle Pacific at home last year. They return many of their players from last year's region runner-up squad.  They have a new coach and a new system so it will be interesting to see how far along they are, having only played two exhibition games.  I am excited to see how our team handles playing on the road back-to-back nights in a hostile environment.  This trip will also tell us where we stand in the region early in the season.”

THE VIKINGS: Western Washington (2-1) opened its 2009-10 season by competing in the Disney Classic on Oct. 30-Nov. 1.  The Vikings were victorious against Grand Canyon (94-70) and San Francisco State (71-52), but fell to Kentucky Wesleyan (71-58). Players to Watch: senior forward Michael Duty 12.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg; senior guard Morris Anderson 11.5 ppg; senior guard Derrick Webb 11.8 ppg; senior center Zach Bruce 6.8 ppg, 8.0 rpg.

THE FALCONS: With a new coach at the helm, Seattle Pacific only lost one player from last year's team that advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division II tournament. The Falcons are favored to win the Great Northwest Atlantic Conference (GNAC) title. Friday's game against Dominican will be the Falcons first game of the regular season. Players to Watch: (2008-09 stats) junior guard Chris Banchero 15.7 ppg, 3.6 spg; senior guard Brandon Larrieu 14.6 ppg, .426 3PT percentage; senior forward Rafael Moreira 11.8 ppg, 6.4 rpg.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
OPENING TIP: CSUMB kicks off the 2009-10 season in the Phoenix Inn & Suites Invitational on Nov. 20-21 in Monmouth, Oregon The Otters take on Western Oregon on Friday, Nov. 20 followed by a match-up with Northwest Nazarene on Saturday, Nov. 21.

PAST WEEKEND: The Otters concluded its exhibition slate on Friday, Nov. 13 against  University of Nevada, falling to The Wolf Pack 63-39.  Senior forward #Veronica Williams# scored a team-high 17 points. Junior center #Julie Heurung# pulled down five rebounds while senior forward Jazz Herrera racked up four for the Otters.  Junior point guard #Michelle Santizo# recorded four points and four steals.

COACH JIMENEZ'S CORNER: “We had two tough Division I opponents in the last two weeks that really helped us learn a lot about ourselves, where we are at this point in our season and what we need to get better at.  The good thing is it's November and we need to be at our absolute best come February and March.  We're gonna continue to get much better on the basketball court and keep training hard in the weight room with Coach Ish to prepare ourselves for the rigors of the CCAA. We're looking forward to playing two very tough GNAC teams this weekend.  Northwest Nazarene has gone to the NCAA tournament the last two season and has four of their five starters back from last year.  We are seeing a veteran Western Oregon team on their home court, also with four of their five starters back.  These are big games where we will be able to test ourselves against two of the very best teams in our Region.”

THE WOLVES: Western Oregon began its 2009-10 season early, traveling to the Disney Classic on Oct. 30-Nov. 1. After dropping the first two games to Southern Indiana (71-64) and Fort Lewis (85-52, the Wolves defeated San Francisco State 75-67 in the tournament finale. Players to Watch: senior forward Katie Torland 17.8 ppg, 6.5 rpg; freshman guard Hannah Whitsett 8.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg;  sophomore guard Megan White 6.0 ppg, 5.7 rpg.

THE CRUSADERS: Northwest Nazarene is coming off a stunning 83-80 exhibition road victory over Weber State University on Monday, Nov. 16 in Ogden, Utah.  The Crusaders finished the 2008-09 campaign with a 18-10 overall record, falling to Alaska Anchorage in the NCAA Division II West Regional, 64-54, on March 13. Players to Watch: (2008-09 stats) senior guard Lindsay Brady 13.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg; senior guard Brittney Roggenkamp 11.8 ppg, 4.2 rpg; senior forward Kristin Hein 10.0 ppg, 8.8 rpg.