LONG BEACH — The Cal State Fullerton men’s basketball team found its range in a cozy road arena and the Titans’ strong shooting performance resulted in their first Big West Conference victory of the season.
Donovan Oday scored 24 points and Fullerton dominated Long Beach State from start to finish on Saturday evening, shooting 56% from the field in an 83-67 win at LBSU’s auxiliary Gold Mine gym. It was the second game this week that Long Beach had to play in its smaller, older arena, because of a facilities issue at the Walter Pyramid.
Fullerton’s win offset a strong individual effort from Long Beach guard TJ Wainwright, who scored a career-high 31 points on a night when his team turned the ball over 24 times.
Despite the presence of more multi-use court lines and the proximity of the bleachers to the court, the Titans (6-14 overall, 1-7 Big West) enjoyed one of their best shooting halves of the season, shooting 62% (13 for 21) overall and 5 for 7 from 3-point range in the first half. The Titans went 5 for 5 from behind the arc in the first nine minutes, while shooting 9 for 11 overall.
The Titans took a 21-11 lead on a strong finish in the lane by Kaleb Brown with 11:51 left in the half, and they held a double-digit lead for the rest of the game. Fullerton extended the lead to 32-17 with 7:58 left on back-to-back baskets in the lane from Oday. Antwan Robinson scored a career-high 14 points – all of them in the first half – shooting 3 for 5 overall (2 for 4 from behind the arc) and making all four of his free throws.
Fullerton’s defense played a role in building a 40-29 halftime lead too, holding LBSU point guard Devin Askew scoreless on 0-of-6 shooting and his team to 42.9% from the field.
The Titans kept their foot on the gas in the second half, using a 7-0 run and a 13-3 extended run push the margin to 53-32. Zion Richardson (career-high 15 points) made a 3-pointer with a hand in his face early to extend the momentum.
Fullerton forced 12 turnovers in each half, including three consecutive trips down the court at one point in the second half.
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Wainwright, who reached the 30-point plateau for the second time in his career, scored 18 in the first half but Long Beach (7-12, 3-4 Big West) could never dig its way out of the early hole.
Wainwright finished 10 for 16 from the field (3 for 5 from 3-point range) and 8 for 9 from the free-throw line to better his previous career high, which he set last season with Robert Morris. Askew added 11 points on 3-for-12 shooting, and Eli Djordjevic had a career-high seven rebounds for LBSU, which shot 45.5% (20 for 44) overall, 5 for 17 from 3-point range and 22 for 26 from the free-throw line.
Fullerton had a 27-16 advantage in points off turnovers.
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Fullerton hosts Cal State Bakersfield on Thursday night, while Long Beach plays at Cal State Northridge the same night.