HAYWARD, Calif. — The Cal State Monterey Bay men's basketball team will head into the postseason with some momentum after closing the regular season with a 75–65 win over Cal State East Bay Saturday night in Pioneer Gym. It was the 14th win of the season for the Otters (14–12, 12–8 CCAA), tying the school record for regular season wins while establishing another with their 12th CCAA win.

The Otters won for the third consecutive game and the fourth time in their last five outings to set up their first round CCAA Tournament matchup at Humboldt State Tuesday in Arcata. The Otters and Lumberjacks finished with identical 12–8 conference marks, but Humboldt won the only meeting between the teams this season—87-76 in Arcata on Feb. 13—to win the tiebreaker for the No. 4 seed and the right to host Tuesday's game.

"Tonight was a microcosm of our season," said Head Coach Rob Bishop. "We started out slow, built up some steam, got our lead and then battled through adversity to hold on for the win. I'm very proud of this team and feel we are as ready as anyone for the tournament."

The Otters were ice cold from the perimeter early in this one, misfiring on their first eight 3–point attempts as East Bay opened its biggest lead at 23–16 midway through the opening period. But CSUMB began to find its rhythm late in the half and used an 11–4 closing run to take a 31–30 lead at the break.

They continued that surge after the restart, beginning the second half with an 8–0 run to open a 39–30 lead. The Otters never let the lead dip below six the rest of the way, eventually leading by as many as 15 before settling on the 10–point final margin.

Ryan Nitz (Rancho Cucamonga HS) led a balanced scoring effort with 13 points. He was one of four Otters to score in double figures. Alex Fertig (Fresno/Buchanan HS) and Marquise Washington (Los Angeles/Cerritos College) shared game–high honors with seven rebounds apiece as the Otter finished with a 40–26 edge on the boards.

The CSUMB–Humboldt game is scheduled to tip at 7 p.m. Tuesday, The winner will advance to the CCAA semifinals to play either No. 1 seed Chico State or No. 8 seed Cal State L.A. Friday afternoon in Stockton.