Fullerton Pulls Away From St. Mary’s, 85-65

MORAGA, Calif. —  By any law of averages, Cal State Fullerton should have done away with St. Mary’s quickly and completely.

The Titans were averaging 96.5 points a game, and making 50% of their shots.

The Gaels were averaging 43 points a game, and hitting only 27.5% of their shots.

Instead, the Gaels stayed with Fullerton for 35 minutes before the Titans pulled away for an 85-65 victory in front of 2,025 in McKeon Pavilion.

Fullerton is 3-0 for the first time since the 1983-84 season after a 20-point victory that didn’t feel like one.

“The 20 points are a little deceiving,” Fullerton Coach John Sneed said.

Fullerton led only 56-55 with 8:25 remaining, but then Mark Hill hit a short, driving bank shot and then a three-pointer. Cedric Ceballos hit a fast-break layup, and then Hill hit another off a St. Mary’s turnover. Agee Ward added a turnaround from the baseline, and was fouled. He missed the shot, but Fullerton led 67-55, and the game was all but over with 4:24 left.

Ceballos, who had made only two of 11 shots in the first half, scored 21 points in the second half and finished with 27 points.

“It doesn’t seem like this win was that easy,” Ceballos said. “But you can’t have a blowout every night.”

Ceballos struggled in the first half but pulled his game together in the second.

“I only took two bad shots in the first half,” he said. “They just weren’t falling. After that things started clicking.”

Hill added 20, and Ward had 16.

James Dailey led St. Mary’s with 25 points.

The Titans had a nine-point lead with less than four minutes left in the first half but lost it quickly.

St. Mary’s scored six points in a row, taking advantage of two Fullerton turnovers, the second a steal by Andre Durity.

“It looked like we couldn’t shoot it in the first half,” Sneed said.

The Titans made 37.5% of their first-half shots.

St. Mary’s (0-3) is a different team from a year ago, when it made it to the NCAA tournament with a team coached by Lynn Nance that played zone defense and a deliberate offense.

This year, the Gaels have no returning starters and with a back injury to guard Terry Burns are down to nine available scholarship players.

St. Mary’s played the game without Coach Paul Landreaux, whose father died Friday night in New Orleans.