Long Beach State beats UC Irvine in OT thriller

LONG BEACH >> Long Beach State led for just under six of the 45 minutes of action at home on Saturday against UC Irvine. But it was for the few minutes that mattered in a 9388 overtime win, as a matchup between the top two scoring offenses in the Big West did not disappoint.

LBSU (14-10, 8-4 Big West) claimed its sixth straight win, this one in comeback fashion against the rival Anteaters in front of 2,361 fans and a packed student section dressed in all black at Walter Pyramid.

Marcus Tsohonis led Long Beach State with 28 points, while Lassina Traore recorded his sixth straight double-double with 16 points and 20 rebounds.

UCI (15-8, 8-3 Big West) scored the first basket in overtime, but Long Beach State controlled the rest of the extra session and shut down the Anteaters on defense. An alleyoop dunk by Aboubacar Traore with LBSU already up five in the closing seconds sealed the win.

Afterward, the LBSU players ran to the student section, waving their arms, thanking their supporters who responded with “Long Beach State” chants. Even during

LONG BEACH STATE 93, UC IRVINE 88 (OT)

THE SCORE

the game, they had turned to the fans, exhorting them to make noise during free throws as LBSU rallied from a 13-point second half deficit.

LBSU coach Dan Monson said the home crowd made the difference in overtime.

“We were behind the whole game,” Monson said. “But when you’ve got a crowd like that, you don’t feel the fatigue like they were.”

Monson noted that Dawson Baker, who led Irvine with 23 points, missed an important free throw in overtime with UC Irvine down by three.

“I don’t think he misses that if that game’s not here,” Monson said.

Jadon Jones, who played 36 minutes off the bench and had a key block in overtime, said Long Beach State has always played with emotion. But it took stringing together some wins before the team could really let it out.

“You can’t go and celebrate with the crowd and be emotional when we’re having breakdowns,” Jones said.

Long Beach State pulled out a win in a game in which it never had control until the end, according to Monson.

Long Beach State capitalized on the glass, outrebounding UCI 50 to 31 and scoring 25 second-chance points. That helped offset a 33% shooting night from 3-point range and a 26 to 11 edge for the Anteaters in points off turnovers.

Irvine coach Russell Turner thought the game switched in the second half, when LBSU switched to an extended 1-2-1 zone defense. The Anteaters weren’t ready, turning the ball over four straight times and allowing easy transition baskets, according to Turner.

Long Beach State also shot 37 free throws to Irvine’s 20 — but committed 10 more fouls. Turner thought there were an “unusually large number of soft fouls called against” his team, which to him changed the game.

“That’s not what’s typical in a Long Beach-irvine game, but that’s a little bit of what we got tonight,” Turner said. “But take nothing away from Long Beach State. They played great. They deserved to win because of the way they performed.”

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