STANFORD, Calif. ? The CSUB men's basketball team needed to bring its “A” game from the opening tip to have a chance to compete against Pac-10 Conference foe Stanford University Tuesday night. Instead, it was the Cardinal who got out to a blazing start, using a quick 9-0 run early in the game to take control before cruising to an 85-50 win at Maples Pavilion.
“Part of the growth of our program is the experience of playing in environments like this,” said CSUB Head Coach Keith Brown. “Especially for our freshmen and sophomores, I expect that they will grow from this experience and will be better able to face this kind of pressure when we see it in the future.”
CSUB struggled early on both ends, going 2-of-7 from the field with four turnovers in the opening minutes as Stanford assumed control. The Cardinal, meanwhile, executed with extreme efficiency on the offensive end, shooting 55 percent from the floor in the first half while building a 50-25 halftime lead.
With the big lead, both teams were able to look at their entire benches. Santwon Latunde and Cory Brown led a balanced CSUB offense with eight points apiece. Brown also nailed his first two collegiate three-pointers and blocked a pair of shots.
Although 12 different Cardinal players scored Tuesday, Lawrence Hill led an otherwise balanced Stanford attack with 20 points in 25 minutes.
Stanford brought a substantial size advantage into Tuesday's game, with seven players on its roster taller than all but Brown, CSUB's 6-10 sophomore forward. The Roadrunners tried a variety of defensive looks to mitigate Stanford's physical edge, but the Cardinal consistently unlocked the CSUB defense for layups and high-percentage shots.
“They simply executed well against a number of things we did defensively,” said Coach Brown. “Still, I was pleased with a number of things we did to compete in the second half.
“I thought Cory showed some good growth and basketball savvy tonight. Not only did he knock down some shots, but we ran the ball through his hands to help alleviate some of their pressure and he handled it well.”
Stanford University 85, CSU Bakersfield 50
CSU BAKERSFIELD (6?18): Blakley 2-10 2-2 6; Latunde 3-8 2-2 8; C. Brown 3-7 0-0 8; Johnson 0-4 3-4 3; Emanuel 1-3 0-0 2; Dennis 0-3 0-2 0; Bragg 1-8 1-5 4; Johns 3-9 0-1 7; R. Brown 1-1 1-1 3; Lara 1-1 1-2 3; Lee 3-3 0-2 6. TOTALS: 18-57 10-21 50.
STANFORD (15?7): Fields 5-6 0-0 10; Hill 8-14 2-4 20; Owens 3-7 2-2 8; Johnson 2-6 1-2 5; Green 3-4 0-0 7; Mann 1-4 3-4 5; Shiller 1-4 0-0 3; Igbinosa 1-3 0-0 2; Brown 3-3 0-0 8; Dildy 2-5 0-2 4; Paul 3-7 2-2 8; Trotter 2-4 1-1 5; Bullock 0-1 0-1 0; Daian 0-0 0-1 0. TOTALS: 34-68 11-19 85.
Halftime: STAN 50-25. 3-point goals--CSUB 4-15 (C. Brown 2-4, Bragg 1-1, Johns 1-2, Blakley 0-2, Johnson 0-2, Emanuel 0-2, Dennis 0-2); STAN 6-16 (Hill 2-2, Brown 2-2, Green 1-1, Shiller 1-4, Dildy 0-1, Bullock 0-1, Paul 0-2, Johnson 0-3). Fouled out--None. Rebounds--CSUB 37 (Johns 8); STAN 48 (Fields 8). Assists--CSUB 7 (Johnson, Bragg 3); STAN 20 (Fields 6). Turnovers--CSUB 15, STAN 7. Total fouls--CSUB 16, STAN 17. Technical fouls--None. Officials--Hicks, Irving, Wood. A-6,748.
