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Blake Seits
Greg Siller

Men's Basketball

No. 9/11 CSUSM Looking for Best-Ever Start Against Sonoma State

SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The No. 9/11 Cal State San Marcos men’s basketball team (10-0, 6-0 CCAA) will look to record its best-ever start to a season in program history as it faces Sonoma State (2-11, 2-5 CCAA) on Saturday at 3 p.m. in The Sports Center.

LAST TIME OUT

  • CSUSM earned its 10th consecutive win and swept the season series against Cal State LA last Sunday in Los Angeles with a 70-61 victory.
  • Greg Milton III led the Cougars in scoring for the third consecutive game with 18 points.
  • CSUSM was able to score 19 points off LA’s 16 turnovers.
  • The Cougars were due to play Humboldt State at The Sports Center on Thursday night, but COVID health and safety measures within the Lumberjacks program forced the game to be declared a no contest.

COUGARS BY THE NUMBERS

  • CSUSM broke into the top 10 of the national rankings for the very first time on Tuesday as it came in at No. 9 in the NABC Top 25 Coaches Poll. The Cougars also moved up to No. 11 in the D2SIDA Top 25 National Media Poll. Both rankings are the highest for the program in the NCAA Division II era.
  • The Cougars kept steady in the D2SIDA West Region Poll with a ranking of No. 2 once again. CSUSM has stayed at No. 2 in the region since Dec. 6.
  • CSUSM will have the opportunity to record what no team before it has done if it can move to 11-0 on Saturday. The Cougars advanced to 10-0 last Sunday, tying the 2014-15 squad for the best start in program history.
  • If the Cougars record their 11th consecutive win, it would rank as the second-longest winning streak in program history. CSUSM previously won 23 straight from Dec. 17, 2013 to March 21, 2014.
  • With seven home contests remaining, a win for the Cougars would also guarantee they finish the regular season with a winning record on their home floor – something last done in 2017-18.
  • The Cougars are one of only five teams in NCAA Division II remaining without a loss this season, including fellow CCAA opponent Chico State.
  • CSUSM is tied with Chico and Regis for the fifth-longest active winning streak in Division II with 10 consecutive wins. The Cougars are also tied for the 19th-longest active home winning streak at seven.
  • With 15 games to go in the regular season, CSUSM currently has the fourth-toughest schedule remaining among the CCAA.
  • The Cougars have tallied just 95 turnovers this season – the fourth fewest in Division II.
  • Holding opponents to just 26.2% from beyond the arc, CSUSM has the fourth-best 3-point field-goal defense in the nation.
  • CSUSM’s turnover margin of 7.2 also ranks fourth nationally.
  • The Cougars’ defense is holding the opposition to 61.1 points per game – the sixth-lowest total in the country.
  • At just 9.5 turnovers per game, CSUSM ranks seventh in Division II.
  • Outscoring opponents by an average of 17.8 points, the Cougars have the nation’s 10th-best scoring margin.
  • CSUSM is tallying 9.9 steals per game, leading the CCAA and ranking 21st nationally.
  • With an assist-turnover ratio of 1.44, CSUSM leads the league and ranks 25th in the country.
  • The Cougars are loving the charity stripe this season as their free-throw percentage of 76.2% tops the conference and ranks 33rd in Division II.
  • CSUSM’s field-goal percentage defense is the 34th best in the country and fourth best in the CCAA as it holds opponents to 40.1% on average.
  • The Cougars’ own field-goal percentage of 46% and 3-point field-goal percentage of 35.7% are both ranked fourth in the conference.
  • Jayce McCain has been solid from the free throw line this season with a percentage of 96.4% – second best in the nation.
  • McCain is also third in the conference for steals per game (2.0) and assist-turnover ratio (2.5).
  • Blake Seits continues to be the CCAA’s third-best scorer at 17.4 points per game.
GAME 11 | SONOMA STATE
DateSaturday, Jan. 8, 2022
Time3 p.m.
LocationSan Marcos, Calif.
VenueThe Sports Center
RecordsCSUSM (10-0, 6-0 CCAA)
SSU (2-11, 2-5 CCAA)
Live StatsSIDEARM Stats
Live VideoCCAA Network
COVID-19 Policy2021-22 CCAA Universities Spectator Policies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SATURDAY AGAINST SONOMA

  • The Seawolves are coming off an 88-82 loss at Cal State LA on Thursday in which Simon Ramirez led the team with 22 points.
  • SSU is 1-4 in its last five games with the lone win coming at home against Humboldt State on Dec. 20.
  • With a 2-5 record in CCAA play, the Seawolves currently sit ninth in the conference standings.
  • SSU has yet to win a road game this season and are 0-5.
  • Only one of its five road losses has been less than 10 points.
  • Nick Klarman and Jaylen Wells both lead the team with 11.4 points per game.
  • The Seawolves are recording the most personal fouls per game in the CCAA at 14.6.
  • SSU is just behind the Cougars with the second-best free throw percentage in the conference at 74.9%.
  • The Seawolves rank last in the CCAA in multiple categories, including field-goal percentage (39.8%), field-goal percentage defense (45.9%), scoring margin (-11.2), scoring offense (62.2), 3-point field-goal defense (37.8%) and rebounds per game (30.38).
  • CSUSM is 6-3 in the all-time series against SSU and is 3-2 at home.
  • The Cougars have won the last three games in the series and five of the last six.
  • CSUSM swept the 2019-20 series with a 67-59 win at home and 59-46 victory on the road.

SUSPENSION OF SPECTATORS / WATCH ON CCAA NETWORK

  • CSUSM temporarily suspended spectator attendance for men's and women's basketball games due to the recent rise in positive COVID-19 cases in San Diego County. This temporary suspension will impact the following games:
    • Saturday, Jan. 8 vs. Sonoma State
    • Thursday, Jan. 27 vs. San Francisco State
    • Saturday, Jan. 29 vs. Cal State Monterey Bay
  • All contests will continue to be streamed live online via the CCAA Network at www.ccaanetwork.com/csusm. 
  • Fans may also download the CCAA Network app on your iOS or Android smartphone, tablet, or through web streaming devices such as Amazon Fire, Roku or Apple TV.  
  • On January 1st, the CCAA Network moved to a subscription-based model at just $9.95 per month.  Subscribers will have access to all CCAA broadcasts, both live and on-demand, for one low monthly price.
Tyrone Nesby IV

COUGAR OUTLOOK

  • After sitting out the 2020-21 season, CSUSM returns five student-athletes from the 2019-20 season in Jayce McCain, Blake Seits, Alex Gil-Fernandez, Chase Bowsher and Sean Dunn.
  • Nine Cougars will be hitting the court in Cougar blue for the first time, including Division-I transfers Lyle Sutton (Idaho State), Tyrone Nesby IV (Wagner), Joel Mensah (James Madison and San Diego State) and Greg Milton III (Wyoming).
  • Joining the team in 2020-21, redshirt freshmen Ethan Barnella, Jack Schultz and Garrett Hall will finally get the opportunity to suit up for CSUSM this season while true freshmen Max Lonneker and Donovan Watkins joined the roster this season.
  • CSUSM was picked to finished seventh in the 2021-22 CCAA Preseason Coaches Poll.

THE FOSTER FILE

  • Head coach B.J. Foster enters his sixth season in charge of the CSUSM Men's Basketball program after taking over the head position in 2016.
  • Under his leadership, the Cougars advanced to the CCAA Tournament for the first time in 2017-18 after finishing the season with a 15-7 conference record and a 20-9 overall record.
  • Prior to becoming head coach of the Cougars, Foster was an assistant coach with the team from 2013 to 2016.
  • Foster has tallied a career record of 69-54 (.561).