December 20, 1998
49ers need more Fokus
College Basketball: Practice game far from perfect.
By GORDON VERRELL
Staff writer Long Beach Press Telegram
The Long Beach State men's basketball team saved itself the indignity of losing an exhibition game Saturday at the Pyramid by rallying in the second half to slip past an outfit made up of former college players, Team Fokus, 84-81.
Co-captain D'Cean Bryant admitted it wasn't one of the 49ers' better efforts, but looked at it this way:
"It's like a blessing in disguise. We had three guys who didn't play but we came back and won."
The 49ers were without 6-11 center Mate Milisa, who sprained his left ankle two weeks ago; sophomore forward Grant Stone, who didn't suit up because of a 103 degree temperature; and junior point guard Charles O'Neal, a junior college transfer who is eligible to practice but not yet eligible to compete.
So, the 49ers took to the floor with just seven scholarship players plus sophomore walk-on James Delone, who is so low on the depth chart that his name on his jersey is misspelled.
The 49ers, who trailed by as many as 12 points, were still behind by nine, 74-65, with little more than eight minutes remaining. The 49ers then went on a 14-0 run - with five different players producing points during the spree - to jump on top by five, 79-74, with four minutes left.
Team Fokus tied the score, 81-81, with 2 1/2 minutes left, then 49ers freshman Ron Johnson made one of two free throws, and Richie Smalls rebounded his own missed shot and put it back in with 1:16 left.
The 49ers held on as Team Fokus missed three 3-point tries in the final minute, two by 6-10 Donyell Marshall, a former standout at Connecticut who finished with 27 points.
The 49ers had four players in double figures, led by Ramel "Rock" Lloyd, who scored 23. Antrone Lee, who took a nasty tumble with 3:24 left when leveled by Marshall, had 17 points, Bryant 13 and Smalls 12.
Smalls also had 15 rebounds, two over his season high. He had nine in the second half, when the 49ers took charge of the backboards. Team Fokus outrebounded Long Beach, 27-24, in the first half, but in the second half the 49ers enjoyed a huge edge, 32-13.
The win won't go on the 49ers' won-lost ledger - they'll still be 3-6 with a three-game losing streak when they play next, on Dec. 27 at Northwestern - but 49er coach Wayne Morgan said there were a number of positives.
"I'm happy to see how hard we worked to come back," he said. "Our defense wasn't that good but we made the plays at the end we had to make."
It may not have been pretty, but at least the game was played in relative privacy. Only a gathering of 300 showed up.