Heading into Wednesday night’s game against Arizona, the Long Beach State men’s basketball team knew what it was getting itself into — a matchup against a star-studded Wildcats team that was eager to shed a three-game losing streak.
LBSU (3-5) came out in a press defense and dropped back into a zone to try and contain the Wildcats. The 49ers defensive game plan fell apart quickly after six consecutive points from Arizona freshman center Deandre Ayton, pushing the Wildcats lead to 11-4 after the first five minutes.
Long Beach was not able to recover after its slow start. Arizona put on an offensive show, going on a 22-4 run with 11:48 left in the first half. The Wildcats continued to push the pace against the 49ers until the halftime break, leading 42-24.
In the second half, Long Beach made a quick push and cut the Arizona lead down to 13 points early on. After a timeout by Arizona head coach Sean Miller, the Wildcats went on an 8-0 run.
“I thought we were poised to crack that 10 point mark and really make a run for it,” assistant coach Myke Scholl said on 22 West Radio. “Some other guys started hitting shots, we got the turnover bug again and it just got out of control.”
Arizona’s momentum increased throughout the game, leading the Wildcats to win 91-56.
Junior guard Bryan Alberts led all Long Beach scorers with 12 points on 4-for-11 shooting. Senior forward Gabe Levin continued his consistent play with 10 points and seven rebounds.
Next up for the 49ers are back-to-back home games this weekend against Fresno State and Stanford. Long Beach will take on Fresno State on Saturday at 4 p.m.
“We have two very good teams coming into the Pyramid but we also have that home court advantage,” Scholl said.