BOX SCORE

SEASIDE, Calif. — Friday night's California Collegiate Athletic Association opener against defending champion Humboldt State figured to provide a tough physical match–up for the Cal State Monterey Bay men's basketball team. Losing one of their top players to injury before the teams took the floor certainly didn't help the Otter cause.

With guard J.J. Campbell (Riverside/King HS) on the bench with a knee injury, CSUMB stayed close early but sixth-ranked Humboldt State eased away in the second half for a 74–59 win Friday night in The Kelp Bed.

CSUMB (1–3, 0–1 CCAA) got a season–high 20 points and six rebounds from junior forward Kevin Loustale (Chico HS/Shasta College), but it wasn't enough to overcome an 11–rebound edge by Humboldt (5–0, 1–0) and a 26–point effort off the bench from Austin Bryan.

The Otters dug themselves an early hole, turning the ball over on the inbounds pass of their first two possessions as Humboldt jumped to a 6–0 lead in the first minute. CSUMB battled back, cutting the lead to 19–18 midway through the first half then cutting it to four points at 36–32 early in the second half.

But a Matt Lipski layup ignited a 13–2 run that put the Lumberjacks up 49–34 and the Otters never got closer than 12 points for the balance of the game.

“We haven't been doing a good job of taking care of the ball early this season, and you have to take care of the ball against a team as good as Humboldt,” said CSUMB Head Coach Rob Bishop. “We were right about our average for the season (20 turnovers) and I said before the game we'd need to be at about 12 to have a chance tonight.”

In addition to Loustale, Brandon Ward (Riverside/Woodcrest HS) scored 10 points while freshman guard Jalen Headspeth (Oakland HS) had a game–high three steals for an Otter defense that forced 19 Lumberjack turnovers.
Brandon Sperling scored 19 points and passed for four assists to compliment Bryan's high game.

CSUMB returns to action Saturday, hosting Sonoma State at 7:30 p.m. in The Kelp Bed. Humboldt heads to the Bay area to meet Cal State East Bay Saturday evening.


HUMBOLDT STATE (5-0, 1-0 CCAA)
Austin Bryan 7-10 7-8 26; Brandon Sperling 8-12 3-5 19; Matt Lipski 4-4 1-1 9; Kyle Baxter 3-6 2-2 8; Scott Clark 3-9 2-4 8; Randy Hunter 2-8 0-0 4; Darren Turpin 0-1 0-0 0; Greg Leslie 0-3 0-0 0; Andrew Torres 0-2 0-0 0; Nathan Hently 0-1 0-0 0; Ethan Dillard 0-0 0-0 0; J,D, Esters 0-1 0-0 0; D.J. Broome. 0-4 0-0 0. Totals 27-61 15-20 74.

CAL ST. MONTEREY BAY (1-3, 0-1 CCAA)
Kevin Loustale 8-11 4-5 20; Brandon Ward 4-7 2-2 10; James Thomas 2-7 0-0 6; Geoff McIntosh 2-7 0-0 6; Derrick Anderson 3-6 0-2 6; Troy Watkins 1-4 3-4 5; Courtland Wharton 1-2 0-0 2; Jalen Headspeth 1-4 0-0 2; James Albert 1-1 0-0 2; Jaron Devine 0-2 0-1 0; Josh Jackson 0-0 0-0 0; Greg Jeffery 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-51 9-14 59.

3-point goals--HSU 5-19 (Bryan 5-6; Sperling 0-1; Baxter 0-2; Clark 0-3; Hunter 0-3; Leslie 0-3; Hently 0-1), CSUMB 4-15 (McIntosh 2-7; Thomas 2-7; Wharton 0-1). Fouled out--None. Rebounds--HSU 40 (Bryan 7), CSUMB 29 (Loustale 6). Assists--HSU 9 (Sperling 4), CSUMB 9 (Anderson 3). Total fouls--HSU 15, CSUMB 18. Technical fouls--None. A-387