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The Walter Pyramid was filled for Homecoming Saturday before a crowd of 3,888 to see the first home men’s basketball game of the season, the men’s volleyball championship ring ceremony and Glenn McDonald’s jersey retirement.
The students section was filled with attendees donning black and gold colors, airbrush LB tattoos and yellow headbands from the homecoming festivities less than an hour before. Coming off a strong performance against No. 21 UCLA Friday, the Long Beach State men’s basketball team came out lackluster against Menlo College in the annual homecoming game. Whether it was fatigue or an underestimation of the Oaks; head coach Dan Monson left that up to his players.
“Obviously it was a little bit of overlooking them, knowing that they aren’t a Division I school,” senior guard Deishuan Booker said. “Like [coach] said it’s an excuse, we can’t let that be a reason for our slow start.”
Booker continued to be the offensive focal point for the 49ers after a career-high against UCLA, leading all scorers with 19 points while shooting 11-of-12 from the free throw line. Sophomore guard Edon Maxhuni found an offensive rhythm, putting up 15 points while shooting 4-of-7.
In the first half, Menlo College simply out-hustled the 49ers. The Oaks were not afraid of Long Beach and were on the floor for every loose ball.
“We really got beat early I felt,” Monson said. “They played harder than us, especially the first half.”
49er fans became worried and uneasy as the crowd grew more silent. At the halftime break the 49ers led 28-25. Towards the end of the half, a student was escorted out of the game in handcuffs.
The second half became a different story for Long Beach. The team came out of the locker room with more energy and intensity on the defensive end. Opening up the second half on a 12-5 run, Long Beach established itself as the more dominant team.
The 49ers applied more pressure, moving to a full-court press defense and causing several Oak turnovers. However, Long Beach was just as sloppy on offense as Menlo, finishing with a total of 23 turnovers to Menlo’s 22.
For the remainder of the second half, the 49ers continued their dominance pushing the lead out to a final score of 78-57.
Next up for Long Beach is a road trip to Arizona State Monday and a matchup at No. 18 Mississippi State Friday.
Monson said he believes Long Beach can compete with Arizona State, especially if the 49ers play with similar intensity as they did with UCLA last Friday.
“I’ve told [the players] that if we play well, we can win. They’ve got to trust me that that’s the case and hopefully we can make believers out of them,” he said.
Watch our video coverage of the game here:
VIDEO | Adam Pacheco
