Cal State L.A. Athletics

Cal State L.A.’s men’s basketball team used one of the nation’s top defenses to advance to the California Collegiate Athletic Association Championship Tournament for the second time in three seasons.

 

The Golden Eagles were fifth in the country in field-goal percentage defense and 17^th in the nation in scoring defense. Cal State L.A. finished the 2009-10 campaign with a 14-14 overall record and successfully battled against some of the top Division II teams in the country.

 

Cal State L.A. put an emphatic end to a lengthy losing streak to eventual NCAA Division II champion Cal Poly Pomona, toppling the Broncos, 54-53, in Pomona on Jan. 16 to snap a 19-game losing streak to the Broncos dating back to Dec. 4, 1999. It was a well-deserved win for the Golden Eagles, who trailed by seven points, 48-41, with 8:50 to go. Cal State L.A. scored the next nine points to take the lead and, after trailing 53-52 in the waning seconds, got an offensive rebound and basket by Leland Jones to win it.

 

The Golden Eagles faced the Broncos again in the conference tournament and despite stifling Cal Poly Pomona’s offense once again, Cal State L.A. struggled to score points as well in a 57-45 loss that ended the Golden Eagles’ season.

 

Cal State L.A. held opponents to just 38.6 percent shooting, which was the fifth-best mark in the country. The Golden Eagles also allowed only 62.5 points per game, which was 17^th in the nation and their 3-point shooting defense was 17^th in the nation after limiting opponents to just 30.1 percent from behind the arc.

 

Cal State L.A. was also effective rebounding the ball, leading the California Collegiate Athletic Association and finishing 33^rd in the country with a margin of 5.2 rebounds per game.

 

The Golden Eagles jumped out to a 5-1 start in conference play after road wins at Sonoma State and Cal State Dominguez Hills and home wins over UC San Diego, Cal State East Bay and Cal State Monterey Bay. Cal State L.A.’s win at Cal Poly Pomona gave the Golden Eagles a 6-3 conference mark and the Golden Eagles finished the first half of conference play at 7-4.

 

Cal State L.A. won only three games in the second half of conference play, which was marked by tough losses, including a pair of hard-fought overtime defeats. One of Cal State L.A.’s most exciting games was in a loss, a 77-74 overtime defeat at home to regular-season conference co-champion Humboldt State. The Golden Eagles trailed by 21 points, 53-32, with just 13 minutes to play, but stormed back to take a 64-61 lead in the final minute. Humboldt State tied it with a 3-pointer and, after Dwayne Jones hit two free throws to give the Golden Eagles a 66-64 lead with 18 seconds to go, Humboldt State tied it again to send the game into overtime.

 

The two teams battled evenly in overtime before Humboldt State pulled away at the end.

 

Senior Chris Fields led the Golden Eagles in scoring with 14.9 points per game and was named to the All-CCAA first team. Dwayne Jones was second on the squad in scoring with 13.8 points per game and was named to the All-CCAA second team.

 

Freshman center Carl Hoffman averaged 9.6 points and 5.8 rebounds per game, while sophomore forward Leland Jones averaged 6.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game.

2009-10 Overall Record: 14-14. CCAA Record: 10-12 (T6^th)

All-CCAA: Chris Fields (1^st team), Dwayne Jones (2^nd team)

2009-10 Recap: Cal State L.A.’s men’s basketball team qualified for the California Collegiate Athletic Association Championship Tournament for the second time in three years. Cal State L.A. got the job done with one of the best defenses in the country. The Golden Eagles limited opponents to just 38.6 percent shooting, which was No. 5 in the country and No. 1 in the CCAA. Cal State L.A. allowed only 62.5 points per game, which was No. 17 in the nation and their rebound margin (+5.2 per game) led the conference and was No. 33 in the nation. The Golden Eagles actually had a better road record (9-6) than home mark (5-8) in 2009-10, including a 54-53 win at Cal Poly Pomona that snapped a 19-game losing streak to the Broncos dating back to 1999. Chris Fields was third in the CCAA in scoring and averaged 14.9 points per game. He was also eighth in the conference in rebounding (5.9 rebounds per game) and seventh in 3-point field goals (44). Dwayne Jones was eighth in the conference in scoring and second on the Golden Eagles with an average of 13.8 points per game. He was also third in the conference in free-throw shooting (85 percent) and earned All-CCAA second-team honors. Freshman Carl Hoffman was third on the team in scoring (9.6 points per game) and rebounding (5.8 rebounds per game). He was ninth in the conference in rebounding and eighth in blocks (24). Leland Jones was fourth in the conference in blocks (27).