SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The Cal State San Marcos men's basketball team wraps up the 2015-16 regular season this week at Humboldt State and No. 25 Cal Poly Pomona.

The Schedule
Game 26
Thursday, February 25 – 7:30 p.m.
Cal State San Marcos (15-10, 11-7 CCAA) at Humboldt State (17-8, 11-8 CCAA)
Arcata, Calif. – Lumberjack Arena
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Game 27
Saturday, February 27 – 7:30 p.m.
CSUSM at No. 25 Cal Poly Pomona (20-6, 13-6 CCAA)
Pomona, Calif. – Kellogg Arena
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On The Line…
CSUSM has an opportunity to tie for third place in the CCAA standings with a pair of victories over Humboldt State and Cal Poly Pomona this week. A pair of victories would make the Cougars' CCAA
record 13-7, which would match CPP for third place. CSUSM, currently fourth in the conference standings, could drop as low as a seventh-place tie with a pair of losses this week. The Cougars were picked to finish fifth in the 2015-16 CCAA Preseason Coaches' Poll.

Probable Cougar Starters
G - #1 Akachi Okugo (Sr., 6-1/180): 12.2 ppg, 2.6 apg, 2.4 rpg, 31.5 mpg
G - #10 Andrew Bournes (Jr., 6-3/195): 9.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.1 apg, 24.9 mpg
G - #23 Darnell Taylor (Sr., 6-4/205): 17.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 3.7 apg, 34.9 mpg
F - #35 Taran Brown (Sr., 6-8/215): 13.2 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 44.9 fg%, 28.8 mpg
F - #42 Declan Daly (Sr., 6-8/240): 9.3 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 52.3 fg%, 27.7 mpg

CCAA Standings (through 2/23/16)
1. No. 13 Chico State 15-3, 21-4
2. No. 19 UC San Diego 14-4, 19-5
3. No. 25 Cal Poly Pomona 13-6, 20-6
4. Cal State San Marcos 11-7, 15-10
5. Humboldt State 11-8, 17-8
5. Cal State Monterey Bay 11-8, 13-12
7. San Francisco State 9-9, 15-9
8. Sonoma State 8-10, 13-11
9. Cal State L.A. 6-10, 7-16
10. Stanislaus State 6-12, 7-16
11. Cal State San Bernardino 5-14, 8-14
12. Cal State East Bay 5-14, 9-17
13. Cal State Dominguez Hills 4-14, 10-16

CSUSM In The CCAA Ranks
Team, league games, top five
1. Blocked shots (4.25)
4. Scoring (73.0)
4. Assist/turnover ratio (1.01)
5. Free throw % (70.9)
5. Defensive rebounding (26.1)
5. Assists (13.0)

Individual, league games, top five
1. Rebounding – Declan Daly (8.9)
1. Blocked Shots – Declan Daly (2.3, 36)
2. Scoring – Darnell Taylor (18.6)
2. Free Throw % - Akachi Okugo (87.5)
4. Minutes – Darnell Taylor (35.0)

Humboldt State Preview
All-time vs. HSU: 1-0

Last Time Out: W, 84-79 (OT) (Dec. 3, 2015); The Cougars and 'Jacks went to overtime in the Cougars' first-ever CCAA game in December. Darnell Taylor led all scorers with 23 points while dishing out six assists and corralling seven rebounds. Declan Daly had 17 points and 12 rebounds. 

HSU Breakdown:  The Lumberjacks had been ahead of the Cougars in the standings heading into last week's contests, but a pair of losses combined with a pair of victories by the Cougars pushed the 'Jacks down a spot in the standings, a game behind the Cougars. A win over CSUSM would guarantee HSU a home game in the first round of the CCAA tournament. HSU is 13-2 on its home floor this season and leads the CCCA in scoring (79.4) and field-goal percentage (46.9).

Cal Poly Pomona Preview
All-time vs. CPP: Saturday will be the first meeting between the teams.

CPP Breakdown: The Broncos have guaranteed themselves at least a share of third place in the league already, which entitles them to a first-round CCAA home game. CPP went on the road to take down first-place Chico State last Thursday, but fell to 10^th-place Stanislaus State on Saturday.

The Jim Saia File
Jim Saia is in his fifth season at the helm of Cal State San Marcos, a program he has built from the ground up since arriving on campus in 2010. Saia holds a 117-35 (.770) on-court record at CSUSM and a 187-64 (.745) on-court record during his previous seven years as a collegiate head coach. He spent three seasons at Fresno Pacific (2007-10) prior to coming to CSUSM.

New Conference
Cal State San Marcos is in its first season of CCAA competition after spending its first four seasons as an independent program in the NAIA. CSUSM was picked to finish fifth in the preseason CCAA coaches' poll. The CCAA is made up of 12 CSU institutions and UC San Diego. The CCAA is one of the premier NCAA Division II leagues in the nation. Its teams have won more national championships (153) than any other conference.

New Territory
After four seasons of competition in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the Cougars enter their first season of NCAA Division II competition in 2015-16. CSUSM is currently in the second year of a three-year transition to full NCAA Division II membership. As a part of the transition, the Cougars will be ineligible for postseason play in 2015-16 and 2016-17.

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