A sellout crowd of over 4200 last night at the Walter Pyramid saw Cal State Fullerton star guard Josh Akognon carry his team on his shoulders in the second half, and ultimately hit the game-winning jumper with about four seconds left, as the Titans beat the 49ers, 61-60. Akognon, who scored 31 points, mostly in the second half, had his heroics set up by Stephan Gilling's clutch 3-pointer from the far corner, which put The Beach up by one with about 17 seconds left. Long Beach had a lead as large as 13 points early in the second half before Fullerton clamped down on defense, and started scoring off 49er turnovers, to whittle down the lead. Gilling led the Niners in scoring with 15, followed by struggling Donovan Morris with 10, despite going 0-4 from 3-point range, and not getting to the free throw line. TJ Robinson added nine points and a game-high 15 rebounds. The 49ers, now 5-2 in conference, head down the 405 to take on UC Irvine Saturday at 7pm.
The crowd was supplemented by a good-sized group of Fullerton supporters, along with 49er Greeks, and athletes from other sports. Several ex-49ers were also on hand to honor former coach Tex Winter, who was saluted during the first half. Winter, a college coaching legend, is more recently known for being Phil Jackson's offensive guru during his championship runs with the Lakers and Bulls in the NBA. Also, former 49ers and Bulls star Craig Hodges presented the game ball at center court at tipoff.
There was some good news from last night, and the 49er women finally got a Big West victory at Fullerton, 54-51. Reserve guard Lynea Williams stepped up with 13 points, and Courtney Jacob had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds in the win. The injury-plagued 49ers got LaTorya Barbee back from a broken foot, as she added 2 points, 3 boards and 2 assists. The ladies return home to take on UCI Saturday at 5pm.
Men's Volleyball is on the road tonight at Stanford. First serve is at 7pm.
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