GAME #24
CSUMB (9-13) vs. San Francisco State (13-10)
Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009 at 7:30 p.m.
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GAME #25
CSUMB (9-13)  vs. UC San Diego (13-9)
Saturday, Feb. 21, 2009 at 7:30 p.m.
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Game Notes



OPENING TIP:
The Otters embark on their final road trip when they face the Gators of San Francisco State on Wednesday, Feb. 18.  CSUMB then heads south to UC San Diego on Saturday, Feb. 21. Currently in 6th place in the CCAA standings, the Otters need to be in the top four to host the first round of the CCAA Tournament.

LOOKING AHEAD:
The Otters close out the 2009 regular season against Cal State San Bernardino on Thursday, Feb. 26, and Cal Poly Pomona on Friday, Feb. 27.

SCOUTING THE GATORS:
San Francisco State (13-10, 7-9 CCAA) is tied for 7th in the CCAA standings. The Gators pulled off a 69-67 victory over Cal State L.A. on Friday, Feb. 13 in San Francisco.  The next night, SFSU fell 74-57 to the Toros of Cal State Dominguez Hills. The Gators are ranked 57th in the nation in turnovers, averaging 13.7 per game.  Players to watch: Robert Hayes (16.7 ppg, 51 steals), Alex Thomas (12.9 ppg, 59 assists), Brad Visman (7.6 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 29 blocks).

SCOUTING THE TRITONS:
UC San Diego (13-9, 10-6 CCAA) is one spot ahead of CSUMB in the CCAA standings, holding 5th place. The Tritons will look for their third series sweep on Friday against San Francisco State.  UCSD posted a 69-63 victory over Cal State San Bernardino on Saturday, Feb. 14 at RIMAC Arena. The Tritons are ranked 10th in the nation in scoring defense, holding opponents to an average of 60.6 points.  Players to watch: Jordan Lawley 13.3 ppg, 80.8 free throw percentage), Kelvin Kim (11.0 ppg, 85 assists), Shane Poppen (10.5 ppg, 7.6 rpg).

OTTERS BREAK INTO NATIONAL STATISTICS:
CSUMB finds itself ranked 56th in the nation in free throw percentage (72.1) and 112th in scoring offense (74.3). Individually, senior #Steve Monreal# is in the national top 100 in two categories: free throw percentage with 104-for-118 in 23 games (88.1, 18th) and assists per game (4.4, 66th).  Senior #Joe Mitchell# is ranked 33th after averaging 9.0 rebounds per game.

AGAINST CAL STATE L.A.:
The Cal State Monterey Bay men's basketball team topped last year's 13-win program record season tonight with a 66-63 overtime victory over Cal State L.A., the Otters 14th win of the 2008-09 season. Senior #Joe Mitchell# recorded his seventh double-double of the season, finishing with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Senior #Dante Green# led the Otters with 17 points and junior #Keith Wilson# added 14 points. Senior #Steve Monreal# dished out seven assists. Both teams had a first half season-low on points, with the Eagles taking a 19-17 advantage into the intermission.

AGAINST CAL STATE DOMINGUEZ HILLS:
The Cal State Monterey Bay men's basketball team was edged out by CCAA leader Cal State Dominguez Hills, 83-72, on Friday, Feb. 13, at the Otters Sports Center. Senior #Steve Monreal# led the Otters with 16 points.  Senior #Joe Mitchell# pulled down 11 of CSUMB's 25 rebounds and a team-high two steals.
 
COMMENTS BY COACH BISHOP:
On CSULA game: “We battled tonight and our efforts paid off. CSULA is a very talented team that played hard tonight. We got two huge shots from Becker and Wilson when we needed them, and we were able to out-rebound them. It was ugly, but I am proud of the guys and how we battled for 45 minutes. Now we need to keep it rolling.”

MITCHELL NAMED WILSON/CCAA PLAYER OF THE WEEK:
#Joe Mitchell#, a 6-foot-4 senior from Oakland, Calif. averaged 15.0 points, 12.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.5 blocks and connected on 52.9 percent of his field goal attempts as the Otters split a pair of road games at Cal State L.A. and Cal State Dominguez Hills. During an 80-70 loss at Cal State L.A., Mitchell scored 17 points and totaled a career-high 19 rebounds for his fifth double-double of the season. He followed that effort with 13 rebounds and five rebounds during a 76-72 win over Cal State Dominguez Hills that helped keep the Otters within a game of first place in the CCAA. A four-year player for the Otters, this is Mitchell's first time being named Wilson CCAA Player of the Week.  

MAKING IT REAL:
Senior #Steve Monreal# has emerged as CSUMB's top scoring threat, averaging 15.7 points per game.  He is shooting 38.3 percent overall but has been even more impressive at the free throw line, making 104-for-118 (88.1 percent) from the charity stripe.  Monreal began the season with a 14-for-14 showing at the free throw line against Alaska-Fairbanks on Nov. 14, 2008.

RECORD WATCH:
Senior #Joe Mitchell# is 87 points away from the 1000 career point milestone.  With 913 points thus far, Mitchell needs to average 21.8 points in the last four games.  Mitchell averaged 12.9 points per game in 2007-08 season and is currently averaging 10.8 ppg. 

HOME SWEET HOME:
The Otters opened the 2008-09 season undefeated at home with eight victories, the best start in school team history. 

CCAA LEADERS:
(Overall statistics as of 02/17/2009)

#Steve Monreal# - 3rd in points (15.7 per game); 1st free throw percentage (89.0 percent), 2nd in assists (4.4 per game); 3rd in steals (1.7 per game), 4th in 3-point field goals made (45).

#Joe Mitchell# - 2nd in total rebounds (208), 2nd in rebounding (9.0 per game); 1st in offensive rebounds (2.9 per game), 2nd in defensive boards (6.1 per game), 4th in field goal percentage (56.0 percent), 12th in block shots (0.5 per game), 14th in assists (2.4 per game), 18th in points (10.8 per game).

#Dante Green# - 6th in field goal percentage (53.5 percent), 12th (T) in rebounding (5.2 per game); 12th in offensive boards (1.8 per game); 13th in defensive boards (3.3 per game), 28th in points (8.8 per game).

#Jose Sanchez# - 22nd in points (9.7 per game).