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January 08 2021: CSU Bakersfield vs Cal Poly
David Dennis/All-Star Sports Photography
58
CSUN CSUN 8-10,4-7 Big West
84
Winner CSU Bakersfield CSUB 15-9,9-6 Big West
CSUN CSUN
8-10,4-7 Big West
58
Final
84
CSU Bakersfield CSUB
15-9,9-6 Big West
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
CSUN CSUN 22 36 58
CSU Bakersfield CSUB 47 37 84

Game Recap: Men's Basketball |

Five `Runners Tally Double Digits in Rout of CSUN

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Rebounding from a tough previous weekend in Santa Barbara, Calif., the CSU Bakersfield men's basketball team posted a dominant victory against CSUN on Friday night. The Roadrunners coasted to a 25-point lead at halftime, held off a Matador surge in the second half, and closed out the Big West Conference game with an 84-58 win.

"We really worked this week, just as much mentally as we did physically," said Rod Barnes, Head Coach of the `Runners.  "I thought our guys were prepared. We worked extremely hard this week on our zone offense and I thought our guys came out and executed it early. CSUN really can score the basketball. I was pleased we were able to slow them down some."

Barnes enjoyed double-digit scoring efforts from five different `Runners, led by guard Shaun Williams. The native of St. Louis tallied 19 points, seven assists, and two steals while redshirt senior De'Monte Buckingham chipped in 16 points, five rebounds, and five assists. Taze Moore did a little bit of everything in CSUB's win over CSUN, tallying 13 points, four rebounds, four assists, two steals, and three blocks.

With the win, CSUB improved to 15-9 overall and 9-6 in Big West play. Down in Southern California, UC Santa Barbara (11-2 BWC) held off UC Riverside (5-4 BWC) on Friday night, moving the `Runners ahead of UCR on win percentage. Bakersfield now sits in third place in the league standings, but plenty of movement is expected over the final three games of the regular season.

As a team, Bakersfield enjoyed a 23-11 scoring advantage on points from turnovers while the `Runners pounded the paint for a 44-28 advantage. CSUB also received 37 points from its bench on Friday night. The `Runner offense knocked down nearly 55 percent of their shots and Bakersfield assisted on 26 of its 36 field goals in the Icardo Center.

First Half

Bakersfield came out of the gate hot, knocking down each of its first four shots for an early, 9-2 lead over the Matadors. CSUB increased its advantage to 12 points, 29-17, with about eight minutes remaining in the first half.

The `Runners went on a 24-5 run over the final 10:31 of the first half, talking a 47-22 lead into the locker room. Senior forward Justin McCall led the way with 11 points and four rebounds, but Bakersfield's stellar half was a team, defensive effort.

Bakersfield pounded the paint (28-6) and converted for 14 points on eight CSUN turnovers. The `Runners shot 64 percent in the opening 20 minutes compared to just 32 percent for their visitors. CSUB also enjoyed an 8-0 advantage in second-chance scoring.

Second Half

Bakersfield led by as many as 28 points early in the second period, but the Matadors used an 18-2 run to pull within 12 points, 52-40. CSUB withstood the surge and never let CSUN cut its deficit to single digits.

From a 58-46 lead, CSUB went on a 22-7 run to take a 27-point advantage, spurred by the hot shooting of Williams. The 6-foot-3 guard heated up in the second half, scoring 12 points in the period and helping CSUB to its 84-58 victory.

Point guard Czar Perry chipped in seven assists on the evening while McCall, a fellow senior, posted 13 points, four rebounds, and a pair of blocks. Bakersfield's defense recorded nine steals and six blocks on Friday while forcing 14 CSUN turnovers.

Tomorrow

CSUB will return to the Icardo Center on Saturday night to close out the regular season with one final game against CSUN. The two teams will tip off on the Valley Strong Court at 7 p.m. (PT) once again, live on WatchESPN and in the ESPN app. After that final game, Bakersfield will enjoy a bye week to recover and prepare for the Big West Basketball Championships, Mar. 9-13, in Las Vegas.

~GoRunners.com~
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