Don't fret Long Beach, at least you still have, well, you have a pretty cool pyramid. Seems that Cal State Fullerton just has it all over Long Beach. The 49ers baseball program is dwarfed by Fullerton's nationally relevant baseball program. Now Fullerton's basketball program is in a position of strength following a 91-75 91-75 win in Long Beach.The Fullerton/Long Beach rivalry has become about as one-sided as the battle between Coke and the Stater Bros. store brand cola.
And that's not even counting Fullerton's dynastic dance program that won another national championship. A point that Fullerton fans take great delight in deriding Long Beach about. The 49ers dance team has long been serenaded with chants of "You're No. 2" or "Second Place." Sophomoric? Sure, but it's about the only thing interesting in this lopsided contest.
This also was a special night for Fullerton because there was a Marcus Crenshaw sighting. For this first time in a long time, Crenshaw received more playing time that starter Junior Russell.
Of course, the cynic would point out that Crenshaw did get a considerable amount of time in a blowout at the Beach. But you have to take wins where you can get them. The key is that Fullerton didn't have any missteps as it looks ahead to playing at first-place Cal State Northridge on Saturday.
(If you want more pictures of the Fullerton cheer squad, go here.)
Some observations from a grainy feed via the Internets:
- Crenshaw was 5-of-7 from three-point range, and he's such a weapon -- you just can't strand him on the bench. The word on the street is that Burton wants to see a little bit more effort on the defensive end. Playing defense is for guys who can't shoot. The scoreboard keeps track of the point total. If you don't score points, you don't win. That said, Russell had a nice game and he can play well in spurts. He's exceptionally good against the bottom feeders in the league. But come on. Russell isn't going to come through in the big games.
- Josh Akognon battled back from a sprained pinkie finger on his shooting hand to toss in 18 points. That has to relieve the anxiety of Titans fans, with the Matadors looming on the horizon.
- Northridge was able to keep pace by fighting off UC Irvine, 69-64. Fullerton is fortunate that Irvine is its traveling partner this season instead of UC Riverside. Teams were able to coast past the Inlanders and give Fullerton its best shot. Not so much this season. Irvine isn't that great, but that is still an upgrade.
In the Western Athletic Conference.
- Nevada has played really well recently, knocking off Fresno State, 79-67. The Wolf Pack has now won 11 of its 14 games and is one game behind front-running Utah State in the conference race. Marcelus Kemp had 28 points to lead Nevada, but only three players were in double figures. That still has to be a concern. But hey, we've seen some one-man teams before. Besides depth isn't all its cracked up to be -- New Mexico State is getting smoked at halftime in Hawaii.
