Men's Basketball | February 19, 2015

SEASIDE, Calif. — March Madness comes to The Kelp Bed a few weeks early. The Cal State Monterey Bay men's basketball team hosts a pair of what are essentially postseason games when Humboldt State and Cal State San Bernardino visit this weekend. The Otters must win both to stay in the thick of the CCAA Tournament race, which is down to its final four games.

Saturday's game will also be senior night as the Otters say farewell to a pair of big men who have been integral in the renaissance of Otter basketball over the past two seasons. Greg Anderson (Murietta/Paloma Valley HS) and Jorey Scott (Lake Tahoe, Nev./Douglas HS) will play their final collegiate games on The Kelp Bed floor.

Both games tipoff at 7:30 p.m. as the nightcaps of men's/women's doubleheader action. Otter fans in the Monterey Bay area may listen live on KION 1460 AM/101.1 FM. As always, live audio, video and stats are available at www.OtterAthletics.com. Visit Gameday Central for the appropriate links.
 

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LUMBERJACK 3–DOT NOTES (17–7, 11–7 CCAA): The Lumberjacks have inserted themselves right into the thick of the CCAA Tournament race by winning 8 of their last 10 games entering this week's action…included in that run was an impressive 71–65 win over Chico State last Saturday…they have been the most dangerous offensive team in the CCAA this season, although their numbers are a bit inflated by a weak nonconference schedule that included Simpson, Bristol, UC Merced and Pacific Union…4 Lumberjacks enter the week scoring in double figures, led by senior guards Austin Bryan (14.5 ppg) and Allan Guie (14.3 ppg)…rebounding has been a soft spot as no Jack averages more than Rakim Brown's 4.5 rpg.

WHEN LAST WE MET: If the Otters miss the CCAA Tournament by one game, the first meeting with Humboldt will be the one that got away. In one of the most entertaining Otter games in recent memory, the teams played through 13 ties and 15 lead changes before Evan Zeller missed the front end of a 1–and–1 with less than 10 second remaining and the Otters clinging to a 74–73 lead. On the ensuing inbounds play, the Otters simply didn't guard Allan Guie, who walked down the lane for a virtually uncontested layup with 5/10ths of a second remaining to hand HSU the 75–74 win. .

WHEN LAST WE PLAYED: The Otters came up big when it counted most, erasing a 13–point deficit to upend Cal State L.A. 71–66 Saturday in Los Angeles. A loss would have left the Otters all but mathematically eliminated from the CCAA Tournament chase. Fertig led the offense with 16 points, becoming just the fourth Otter to go over 1,000 career points in the process.

THIS DATE IN OTTER HISTORY: The Otters took the inaugural Captain's Bell from Cal Maritime in the first MB game ever played on a Feb. 20th. The Otters beat the Keelhaulers 87–72 on Feb. 20, 2009 in Vallejo.

ALEX 1K: In what was all but a fait accompli, junior guard Alex Fertig finally became the fourth Otter ever to reach 1,000 career points when he scored 16 points Saturday at Cal State L.A. to bring his mark to 1,009. The magic points came when he hit a short jumper as time expired in the first half.

NEXT UP FOR ALEX: As Alex Fertig continues his assault on the CSUMB career scoring record, the next player in his path is Dexter Amey, who scored 1,021 points in a career that ended in 2002. Matt Dahlhamer (1,075) and Brandon Ward (1,231) hold the top two spots in Otter history

WORKING OVERTIME: The Otters played consecutive overtime games for just the second time in school history when the they played bonus ball versus Sonoma State (Feb. 7) and at Cal State Dominguez Hills (Feb. 13). The only other time it happened, the 2007 Otters defeated Cal State L.A. 109–106 in three overtimes then beat San Francisco State 75–74 in a single extra period. The Otters are now 10–5 in overtime under Rob Bishop.

QUINTUPLE DOUBLE FIGURES: The Otters placed five scorers in double figures Jan. 17 at Humboldt State, the first time they have accomplished the feat this season. The last time five Otters turned that trick in a single game came in an 89–83 win over Cal State East Bay on Dec. 20, 2013.

60 SHALL BE THE NUMBER, NO LESS: With apologies to Monty Python, the number for the Otters shall be 60, not three. Following CSUMB's 66–59 loss at Cal Poly Pomona last Friday, the Otters are now 0–44 when scoring fewer than 60 points dating back to the 2004–05 season, their first at the NCAA Division II level. The last time the Otters scored fewer than 60 points and won was a 54–53 decision over Cal Poly Pomona in The Kelp Bed on Jan. 29, 2005.

OTTERS AMONG THE CCAA LEADERS: With Evan Zeller, the league's No. 4 scorer, leading the way, the Otters are well represented in the CCAA's Top 10 lists. Otters making the grade include: SCORING: No. 4 Evan Zeller (15.1 ppg); *3PT%: No. 5 Evan Zeller (.380); FT%: No. 9 Evan Zeller (.807); REBOUNDS: No. 6 Greg Anderson (6.8 rpg); ASSISTS: No. 5 Patrick Lefiti (3.3 apg); No. 10 Evan Zeller (2.6 apg).  *Min. 2.0 made per game

HE GIVITH AND HE TAKETH AWAY: With five assists last week, Alex Fertig moved up to the No. 5 spot on the CSUMB career assist list with 155, passing Richard Jenkins (153) and tying Steve Monreal. On the flip side, his two steals last week moved him past Steve Monreal for sole possession of fifth (80).