8-15, 2-8BWC
Long Beach State
13-12, 7-3BWC
Cal Poly Nearly Overturns 17-Point Deficit, Falls at Long Beach State
2/11/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
POSTGAME REACTION: JOE CALLERO
LONG BEACH – Senior guard David Nwaba (top) recorded his second career double-double with a career high 24 points and 13 rebounds Thursday evening, but the Cal Poly men's basketball program – after nearly overturning a 17-point second-half deficit – fell versus Long Beach State inside Walter Pyramid, 73-70.
Senior guard Reese Morgan added 17 points and freshman guard Trevor John scored a career high nine for Cal Poly (8-15, 2-8), which trailed Long Beach State (13-12, 7-3) 59-42 with seven-and-a-half minutes to play before outscoring the 49ers 28-14 to finish the matchup.
Trailing by double digits a majority of the second half, Cal Poly received the second of sophomore forward Luke Meikle's two three-pointers to cut its gap to 64-55 with three-and-a-half minutes remaining. Two minutes later, John sank his second three-pointer of the evening to bring the Mustangs to within four at 67-63.
Long Beach State was able to pad its lead with four successive free throws, but Cal Poly finished the game with a jumper from Meikle before John converted a three-point play to shorten the deficit to 73-70 with two seconds remaining. Cal Poly, however, couldn't pick up the steal on the game's final possession as Long Beach State ran the clock out.
Nwaba's double-double was the second by a Mustang this season and his first double-double since scoring 20 points and grabbing 13 rebounds at UC Irvine on March 1, 2014. While also matching a career high for rebounds, Nwaba's 24 points were the most by a Mustang since guard Ridge Shipley scored 26 versus CSUN on Feb. 12, 2015.
Cal Poly closes its two-game road trip at UC Riverside on Saturday, Feb. 13. Tip time is 7:30 p.m. with action televised on Fox Sports West.
Seven of Cal Poly's first eight shot attempts came from three-point range and two converted attempts by Morgan provided the Mustangs an early lead. Cal Poly, however, was held scoreless for an ensuing seven-minute span and Long Beach State utilized a 13-0 run to take a 15-6 lead 11 minutes prior to halftime.
Facing an 18-8 deficit midway through the opening half, Cal Poly climbed within two points of Long Beach State through three-pointers from Morgan and Nwaba before Nwaba added a baseline dunk.
The 18-16 deficit was as close as Cal Poly came the remainder of the night, however, as the 49ers closed the first half with a 17-8 run. John – one of only three Mustangs to score in the first half – knocked down a three-pointer with 20 seconds to play in the half and trim the deficit to 35-24.
Held to a 29.6 (8-for-27) percent field goal mark during the first half, Cal Poly opened the second with a 7-2 run to move within six points of the 49ers.
The Mustangs, however, were kept to just one field goal during the next six-and-a-half minutes as Long Beach State established a 50-35 lead with 11 minutes remaining.
Layups from Morgan and Shipley brought Cal Poly to a 50-40 deficit and with the Mustangs still trailing 53-42 with eight minutes to play, Long Beach State received back-to-back three-pointers from guards Travis Hammonds and A.J. Spencer to build its 17-point lead.
