January 10, 1998
L.B. State improves to 3-0 in Big West
College basketball: 49ers finish strong to knock off Utah State.
By GORDON VERRELL
Staff writer Long Beach Press Telegram
Long Beach State's men's basketball team is still unbeaten in 1999, and unbeaten as well while calling the Pyramid home.
Literally.
The 49ers spent another night sleeping under the big top - Coach Wayne Morgan's plan to truly make the Pyramid "our home" - and it paid off again with a 64-55 victory Saturday night over Utah State.
The 49ers are now 6-7 overall, but, more importantly, they're 3-0 in Big West Conference play for the first time in 18 years.
"It feels great, it's a big turnaround," said Ramel "Rock" Lloyd, who remembers well the four-game losing streak last month. "Now we've got to keep working and not get complacent. We can't get too satisfied."
Or, as Antrone Lee put it: "It's great, but it's over. Now we've got to put it behind us and get ready for New Mexico State."
That's on Thursday night at Las Cruces, N.M. the first of four consecutive road games for the 49ers.
The 49ers' performance Saturday night was much like their win two nights earlier over Nevada. They had a nice lead, lost it, then took charge at the end.
Utah State (7-6, 0-2) actually pulled in front, 47-45, with 8:55 remaining.
At that point the 49ers went on a tear, outscoring Utah State, 12-2, over the next 6 1/2 minutes, with Mate Milisa producing eight of the points.
The 6-11 Milisa connected on a 3-point basket to jump the 49ers back on top, this time to stay. He followed that with a long 2-pointer from the top of the key. D'Cean Bryant made a key basket with five minutes left, recovering the ball after Lloyd had muffed it on a fast break. That gave the 49ers a five-point lead, and Milisa added another 3-pointer.
"He's probably our most consistent 3-point shooter," Morgan said of the towering Milisa. "That's why we pop him out there (from under the basket)."
Milisa has a good touch at the free throw line, too. He was 6-for-6 from the line, and over two-plus games has made 15 consecutive free throws.
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The 49ers turned the ball over 18 times, Utah State 21.
"You can't turn the ball over the when the game's on the line," said the Aggies' first-year coach, Stew Morrill. "Right now we've a very tentative team."
And, suddenly, a struggling one. After starting the season 5-0, including a win over then-ranked Utah, the Aggies have lost six of eight and three in a row. They're 0-2 in the Big West, their poorest start in 14 years.
The 49ers came out with a mighty rush, making 10 of their first 12 shots, including their first five, four of which were 3-pointers, by Charles O'Neal, Bryant, Lloyd and Lee.
In just 4 1/2 minutes the 49ers had opened an eight-point lead. They led at halftime by five, and were on top again by eight little more than seven minutes into the second half.
Utah State made its one solid run, a 10-0 splurge to briefly take the lead. That's when Milisa got the 49ers back on track.
Milisa led the 49ers with 20 points, Lloyd had 15 and Lee 11. Donnie Johnson scored 11 points and had a game-high 10 rebounds for the Aggies.