After losing nine straight games, the Long Beach State men’s basketball defeated Pepperdine 75-66 in a convincing effort on both the offensive and defensive end Wednesday night at the Walter Pyramid.
With a fast start from both teams, LBSU (2-9) was anxious to get back to playing its style of basketball: fast paced.
Pulling away early from the game, the 49ers pressured the Waves (4-5) into contested jump shots.
LBSU junior forward Gabe Levin had a strong performance, blocking two shots in the first half.
The scoring started off from the bench as freshman guard Loren Jackson scored 8 points in the first half.
Junior guard Roschon Prince scored eight points and grabbed nine rebounds off the bench.
“I know we pride ourself on ‘no paint points’ and getting rebounds is a thing we pride ourselves on,” Prince said. “We have been lacking in the area on our road games, we just try to make a change.”
Pepperdine held the 49ers without a point for a four-minute period in the first half.
Although they were held scoreless for that moment, LBSU ended the half with a 33-31 lead.
While LBSU coach Dan Monson holds his team accountable if they don’t hold their opponents under 60 points, he admitted that the tough schedule he planned out this season lost some of his players confidence.
“I didn’t want the players to play desperate,” Monson said on the win. “I wanted a sense of urgency.”
The Waves came out of the locker room fast to take an early in the second half.
It wasn’t enough for Pepperdine, as the 49ers came out moving their feet on the defensive end.
LBSU pulled away with four minutes left and a 70-53 lead, getting the stops necessary on the defensive end.
Junior Evan Payne came out hot after missing two games for an undisclosed reason.
“It was about getting back out there and getting [back into] in the flow,” Payne said. “It was good getting a couple of reps out there in the first half.”
The 49ers had a total of five steals and four blocks and 12 points off turnovers.
LBSU shot 46 percent from the field and will now travel to Texas where the game will be nationally televised on ESPN 2 at 3 p.m. Saturday.
