`Runners Aim to Start WAC Play 2-0 on Wednesday

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BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – One Western Athletic Conference victory is in the bag for the Roadrunner men's basketball team, but 15 games remain for CSU Bakersfield. The `Runners will have little time to recover from their grueling battle against Grand Canyon on Saturday as California Baptist will make the drive up from Riverside, Calif. for a mid-week clash. On Wednesday, Jan. 8, CSUB will look to improve to 2-0 in league play with a win over the Lancers.

"I thought we grew [during the GCU game]," said Rod Barnes, Head Coach at CSUB. "I have been seeing us grow. We still have a great upside to this team. There's some things we can definitely do better, but I think we're heading in the right direction."

Barnes' `Runners kicked off league play on Saturday night with a thrilling, 69-62 victory against GCU. Bakersfield will need all of the momentum it gained from that win to take on a strong CBU squad. California Baptist wrapped up non-conference play with a 9-4 record and is currently 1-1 in WAC games after defeating UTRGV and falling to NM State last week.

The 2019 WAC Newcomer of the Year and a Bakersfield native, Milan Acquaah continues to score at an alarming rate for CBU. The junior guard tallies 19.5 points per game and averaged 21.5 points a contest in the first two WAC games this season. The Lancers post a league-leading 81.5 points a game on the year, making defense a vital focus for Barnes and his CSUB squad this week.

Bakersfield (7-9, 1-0 WAC) has a relatively unfamiliar relationship with California Baptist as the two teams have met just five times in the all-time series. After a pair of meetings in 1972, the squads did not face off again for 24 years. When CBU joined the WAC last season, the series was rekindled and the `Runners and Lancers split their pair of games with both teams winning on the road. CSUB leads the all-time series 4-1 heading into this week's meeting in Bakersfield.

Tipoff on Wednesday is scheduled for 7 p.m. in the Icardo Center. As part of CSUB's 661 Game promotion, discounted tickets are available for just $6.61 when pre-purchased online at GoRunners.com/tickets. Fans who cannot make it to the Icardo Center can follow along live via the ESPN family of networks. Links to the live stream, radio broadcast, and live stats can be found on the `Runner men's basketball schedule page.

~GoRunners.com~

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