49ers’ crusade prevails

LONG BEACH — Long Beach State Coach Dan Monson’s crusade won out over the last-second, full-court cruise of UC Irvine’s Michael Hunter Saturday afternoon.

The host 49ers, inspired by Monson’s single-minded emphasis on defense, saw the final buzzer make the most important stop of all, when Hunter’s coast-to-coast layup attempt dropped in an instant after time expired.

Instead of overtime, the play capped a 55-53 Big West Conference men’s basketball win that ended Long Beach’s five-game losing streak and lifted the preseason conference favorite out of the Big West cellar.

“Just like missing free throws can be a virus, winning and losing can be the same way,” said Monson, whose team improved to 9-7, 1-2 in conference, in front of 2,478 at Walter Pyramid. “When you lose five in a row, it takes a toll on your confidence.”

Monson said he borrowed a concept from Alabama football coach Nick Saban about preparing the Crimson Tide for Thursday’s BCS National Championship game, in which it defeated Texas at the Rose Bowl.

“Saban said his biggest concern about preparing his team was to clear the clutter in his players’ heads,” Monson said. “I told our kids, when things are bad, you need to clear the clutter and I was going to help them with that. I told them the only thing they needed to be concerned about was getting defensive stops.”

Monson emphasized his point by holding an intrasquad scrimmage to end a long day at the gym Friday that included two practices, two film sessions and a weightlifting workout.

“I tried to divide the first 10 as evenly as I could and we said the first team to five points would start [Saturday],” Monson said. “It was probably the best scrimmage we’ve had all year. It took 13 minutes of action for one team to score five.”

The 49ers’ starters did not include three scorers averaging in double figures, but Monson was not concerned.

“If we would have lost this game, I told our kids, it would have been my fault, because I made a crusade of this game, for our defense to try to win it.”

Monson got his wish, when T.J. Robinson missed the front end of a one-and-one free-throw situation with five seconds left and UCI (8-8, 2-2) rebounded and called timeout.

Hunter took the inbound pass about 10 feet from his own baseline and proceeded to drive the length of the floor, only to narrowly run out of time.

UCI sophomore Eric Wise missed two short jumpers and Adam Folker misfired on a point-blank follow attempt on the Anteaters’ second-to-last possession, after Long Beach’s Caspar Ware netted a 14-foot jumper to break a 53-53 tie with 1:33 left.

It was the fifth straight field-goal conversion for Ware, a 5-foot-10 sophomore who was one of the usual starters to come off the bench. Ware had a game-high 17 points to help the hosts stave off a valiant effort by the ’Eaters.

UCI, led by some inspired defense and a rebounding effort that produced a 32-31 advantage on the boards, claimed a 25-21 halftime lead.

The visitors led, 35-31, with 14:35 left, before the 49ers produced an 8-0 spurt to turn the tide.

When Folker converted a Hunter assist into a layup with 2:49 left, the score was deadlocked at 51.

Wise, who led UCI with 12 points, nine of which came in the second half, netted a 14-footer with 2:10 left to create a 53-53 tie. But UCI failed to score the rest of the way.

“It was a back-and-forth game,” UCI Coach Pat Douglass said. “When we got down by seven in the second half, we didn’t back down and we battled back.

“Long Beach is a good team that was playing at home, so I was pleased with our overall effort.”

Wise and Folker each had a team-high seven rebounds, while Wise led UCI with four assists and two steals.

Wise made two of eight field-goal attempts and was eight for 13 from the foul line.

Folker’s eight points were a career high.

Big West Conference

Long Beach State 55,

UC Irvine 53

UCI – Wise 12, Losonsky 2, Folker 8, Hunter 10, Moore 8, Wilder 7, Atkinson 4, Rembert 2.

3-pt. goals – Moore 1, Wilder 1.

LB State – Phelps 6, Chang 2, Anderson 7, Plater 6, Woodard 0, Ware 17, Robinson 11, Gilling 4, Lazdauskas 2.

3-pt. goals – Ware 1, Plater 1, Anderson 1.

Halftime – UCI, 25-21.