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UP NEXT: The Roadrunner men's basketball team continues its four-game homestand Saturday night by hosting perennial NCAA Tournament contender Utah State at Rabobank Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
ON THE AIR: Saturday's game will be televised locally on Bright House Ch. 26. Roadrunner basketball alumni Vance Palm and Beau Redstone will handle the play-by-play and color duties. As always, you can follow all of the action on the radio at KERN NewsTalk 1410 AM. Corey Costelloe will call the play-by-play.
TICKETS, PLEASE: Tickets to all Roadrunner men's basketball games may be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com. For ticket package and group ticket information, call the CSUB Athletics Ticket Office at (661) 654-BLUE.
LIVE STATS WEBCAST: If you can't get to the game, follow the action with real-time live stats via the JumpTV Game Watcher at www.gorunners.com. Choose "Live" from the navigation menu on the left side of the page.
AGGIE NOTES: The Aggies play at Utah Wednesday before heading to Bakersfield...USU enters the week winners of 3 of its last 4 after opening the season 2?3...Sr. G Jaycee Carroll leads the Aggies at 20.3 ppg...he has 28 3-pointers through 9 games and is shooting 49 pct. (28?57) from beyond the arc...Carroll also leads the team at 6.8 rpg...Sr. F/C Stephen DuCharme adds 13.4 ppg.
SERIES HISTORY: CSUB and Utah State met for the first time in 29 years last season, with the Aggie prevailing 65?49 in Logan. . .Carl Damus led Bakersfield with 12 points while Steve DuCharme led USU with 13 points. . .USU took the only previous meeting vs. CSUB, 110?89, in Logan in 1977.
THIS WEEK IN ROADRUNNER HISTORY: The Roadrunners played their first?ever game on December 1, 1971, defeating U.S. International University 62?60 in San Diego.
LATUNDE LEADS THE WAY: Junior forward Santwon Latunde (Landover, Md./Cowley County CC) has been Mr. Consistency for the Roadrunners. He is the only player to score in double figures every game this season, scoring between 10 and 18 points in each of the first seven games. He has also been CSUB's main weapon on the boards, leading the team on the glass the last four outings while average a team?best at 6.7 rebounds per game.
THE JOHNS AND 'TWON SHOW: From a statistical standpoint, the 2007?08 season can be dubbed the “Johns and 'Twon Show” through the first seven games. The junior duo has combined to lead the team in scoring all seven games and in rebounding in five of the seven games. Terrence Johns (Chicago/Bakersfield College), the 2007 California Juco co?Player of the Year, has led the team in scoring four times, including a 26?point outburst in the opener at Cal State Fullerton and 25 points at Cal State Northridge on Thanksgiving eve. Santwon Latunde led the 'Runners in scoring the other three games (reaching double figures in all seven games) while leading the team in rebounding the last four games.
GRASMICK TOPS 500: Senior guard Zack Grasmick (Strathmore/Granite Hills HS) scored seven points against San Jose State to reach the 500?point plateau for his career. He became the 54th player in CSUB history to score 500 or more career points.
If Grasmick keeps at his current pace ? 8.7 points per game ? he will finish his career with 694 points. That would put him No. 22 on CSUB's all?time scoring list.
CLOSING IN ON ANOTHER MILESTONE: In addition to the 500?point zone, Zack Grasmick finds himself within shouting distance of another CSUB career milestone. With 13 three?point field goals so far this season, Grasmick now has 120 for his career. He needs 13 more to catch Dwuan Rice for No. 2 on the all?time list (133).
...AND THE LITTLE ONES SHALL LEAD THEM: With an eye towards the future, the Roadrunners continue to play a rotation that leans heavily on their younger players. Freshmen and sophomores account for 15 of CSUB's 35 total starts this season and have played 736 of a possible 1,400 minutes this season (53 percent).
A FAST START FOR THIS FRESHMAN: Freshman forward Cory Brown (Lakeside/El Capitan HS) is the first freshman ever to start his first seven games at CSUB. More than just start, he is contributing in a big way. Brown ranks No. 3 on the team in minutes played (187/26.7 mpg) and ranks No. 2 in rebounding at 5.6 rebounds per game. For good measure, he averages 9.0 ppg (No. 3 on the team) and owns seven of CSUB's 12 blocked shots this season.
SECOND?HALF BLUES: Given Bakersfield's reliance on youth this season, it probably comes as little surprise that the 'Runners have shot much better earlier in games than late in games as the youngsters make the adjustment to NCAA Division I play. Through the first seven games, Bakersfield is shooting 34 percentage points higher in the first half (.446, 79-of-177) than in the second half (.412, 77-of-187).
STEWART LEAVES TEAM: After playing just four minutes in one game, junior guard Javaraus Stewart (Camille, Ga./Georgia Perimeter College) has left the team to return home for personal reasons Head Coach Keith Brown announced Monday. Stewart played in the second game of the season at Saint Mary's (CA) before being sidelined due to medical reasons.
WHERE OTHERS HAVE GONE BEFORE: Making the leap from NCAA Division II to NCAA Division I play is a big step. It's also a step taken by several Roadrunner rivals over the past few seasons. Bakersfield will be the sixth West Region school to make the jump since 1990. The others are: Cal Poly, Cal State Northridge, Sacramento State, UC Davis and UC Riverside.
In fact, DII and the California Collegiate Athletic Association have been jumping off points for many of the current DI programs in the West. All nine Big West Conference members are former DII schools and all but UC Irvine were formerly in the CCAA. Other former DII and CCAA schools from the West include Fresno State, Pepperdine, San Diego State and San Jose State.
'RUNNERS VS. DI COMPETITION: Although 2007?08 is the first time the Roadrunners take on a full NCAA Division I schedule, it does not mark the first Bakersfield foray into NCAA Division I play. The 'Runners own an all?time mark of 18?51 in 69 games against 35 different Division I opponents. Note that this mark does not include games against current DI teams that were not DI when they met.
36 YEARS OF CSUB BASKETBALL: The 2007?2008 season marks the 37th anniversary of Roadrunner men's basketball at CSUB. Since the program's inception in 1971?72, the Roadrunners have posted an impressive all?time record of 730?312 (.701).
