SAN
BERNARDINO - Junior forward
Brandon Brown (6'7''-F) scored a game-high 34 points en route to tournament
Most Valuable Player honors as Cal State San Bernardino held on for an 80-78
victory over Cal State Monterey Bay to capture the 2009 California Collegiate
Athletic Association (CCAA) Men's Basketball Tournament Saturday night at
Coussoulis Arena. The Coyotes (20-9), who also tied for the CCAA's
regular-season title, earned the conference's automatic berth to the NCAA
Tournament. The complete field and seedings will be announced Sunday afternoon.
Senior forward
Joe
Mitchell (6'4''-F), who became the first Cal State Monterey Bay player to
score 1,000 points, scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Otters
(16-14).
It was the first CCAA tournament title ever for the Coyotes who have been in the
CCAA since 1991-92 after being ousted in the quarterfinals in 2008 and lifted
their record to 20-9 on the season and guarantees them a berth in the upcoming
NCAA West Regional. CSUSB entered the tournament ranked No. 7 in the region and
had to survive three tense, close-fought games to take hold of the tournament
championship banner along with an MVP award for Brown and an all-tournament
honor for teammate
Devin
Montgomery (6'0''-G).
To celebrate the championship, the Coyotes had to beat Sonoma State 79-77, UC
San Diego 76-72 and then take a two-point victory over the Otters.
The Otters, having pulled themselves out of a hole, took the lead for the first
time 60-59 on a dunk by Mitchell (24 points and 10 rebounds) at the 11:33 mark
of the second half. The lead expanded to five at 67-62 on a layin by
Dante
Green (6'4''-F) with 9:13 left . A pair of free throws by Sean Jergo made it
71-66 Otters with 5:23 to go.
However,
Michael Frazier (6'4''-G/F) drained a three and Brown scored on a layup to
tie the game at 71 with 4:38 left. CSUSB regained the lead at 73-71 with 3:57 on
a layup by
Dubois Williams (6'6''-G) off an assist by Brown. After Warren Freeman drew
the Otters even with a bucket, Williams scored again on an assist by Brown for a
75-73 edge with 2:36 to go. An Otters turnover led to a jumper by Brown with
1:53 left to give CSUSB a 77-73 lead but Freeman came right back with an easy
layup at 1:17 to make it 77-75. Brown hit a baseline jumper for a four-point
lead at 79-75 with 47 seconds left but Mitchell responded with a three-point
play to trim the margin to 79-78 with 22 seconds left. Monreal fouled
Tim
Denson (6'1''-G-86) with 20 seconds left and Denson made one of two for a
80-78 lead but the Otters had the ball and called time with 12 seconds left to
set up a play.
Jose
Sanchez (6'4''-G) missed a jumper, Mitchell grabbed the rebound and tried
another shot but CSUSB's
Reggie Brown (6'5''-G/F) came up with the loose ball after a scramble in the
corner as the horn sounded. Here's how the Otters took control of the game until
very late in the game. They outscored CSUSB 18-1 on second-chance points and
15-8 on points off turnovers, outrebounding the hosts 35-27. But CSUSB's
offensive team work which led to a season-high 27 assists and just 13 turnovers
helped turn the tide. However, Brown was the key with his four assists, five
rebounds and a steal to help the cause as he made 14 of 22 field goals and six
of nine from the foul line. There have been 11 CCAA tournaments since 1987 and
he and Montgomery are the first Coyotes to earn all-tournament honors in that
time.
CSUSB shot 56 percent from the floor (31 of 55) and 40 percent from the three (8
of 20). The Otters were nearly as good, shooting 51 percent (30 of 59) and 81
percent from the foul line but just 29 percent from the three. Backing up
Mitchell were Green with 11 points and Sanchez with 12 points. Monreal had five
assists and three steals to go with seven points. Lawrence Tyson had 14 points,
two assists for the Coyotes while Frazier finished with 12 points on four
3-pointers. Montgomery scored only six points but had nine assists in the game.
The Coyotes will learn just where they will be seeded and where they will play
the West Region quarterfinals on Sunday night. It could be Western Washington
where the Vikings beat Central Washington for the Great Northwest Athletic
Conference title. Or it could be at BYU-Hawaii, the No. 1 team in the region and
the Pacific West Conference champion.
Courtesy of goccaa
Tournament Final: Cal State San Bernardino - Cal State Monterey
Bay 80-78 Tournament SemiFinals:
Cal State Monterey Bay - Cal Poly Pomona 54-49 (OT)
Cal State San Bernardino - UC San Diego 76-72
CCAA All-Tournament MVP
Brandon Brown of Cal State San Bernardino
CCAA Player of the Year: Larry
Gordon of Cal Poly Pomona CCAA Freshman of the Year: Kyle
Baxter (6'7''-F) of Humboldt State CCAA Newcomer of the Year:
Brandon Brown of Cal State San Bernardino CCAA Coach of the Year :
Greg
Kamansky of Cal Poly Pomona
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SAN
BERNARDINO - Junior forward
