Conference Battle Casts Shadow Over March Madness

Three to go, then how many more?

The Long Beach State men’s basketball team hopes to continue playing well into March. But then, who doesn’t?

First, the 49ers must finish their Big West Conference business. The job has been formidable.

Long Beach (15-9, 10-5 in the Big West) has a half-game lead over UC Irvine (13-9, 9-5). The 49ers have three regular-season conference games remaining, beginning with tonight’s game against Pacific at the Pyramid at 7:30. The Anteaters have four games left.

Long Beach lost two consecutive close games before defeating Utah State, 71-50, Saturday night at Logan. Forward Akeli Jackson provided perspective on the key road victory.

“It was kind of desperation time for us,” Jackson said. “Everyone had the frustration of the last two losses on their minds. We’re trying to win the Big West championship, so we really needed it.”

Nice, but that’s history. Coach Seth Greenberg doesn’t have time to concentrate on history. The present is too confusing.

“Nothing is done yet . . . there’s still too much basketball left,” Greenberg said. “Irvine can still win it, [third-place] Nevada still has a chance.

“I said all along that [the race] was going to come down to the last weekend of the season. We obviously have a good opportunity, but now we have to capitalize on that.”

The final three won’t be easy. Not that the previous 15 were especially relaxing either.

The 49ers appeared ready to pull away from the pack after winning six consecutive conference games from Jan. 25-Feb. 10. Their average margin of victory was 12 1/2 points during the streak. But then came three-point losses to Irvine at home and Nevada on the road.

Long Beach hosts to San Jose State at 4:30 p.m. Saturday. Long Beach finishes the regular season March 2 at UC Santa Barbara.

Only the top six teams qualify for the Big West tournament, which takes place March 8-10 at the Lawlor Events Center in Reno. The tournament winner receives the Big West’s automatic NCAA tournament berth.

Pacific (11-11, 7-7) is tied for fifth with Utah State (13-13, 7-7). Santa Barbara (11-12, 8-7) is fourth, a half-game ahead of Pacific and Utah State. San Jose (7-15, 6-8) is a game out of a tournament spot.

“We get everybody at a great time,” Greenberg said, sarcastically. “Everybody still has a chance.”

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Breaking ties: Long Beach and Irvine each will finish with 13-5 conference records if they win their remaining games. The first- and second-place teams receive byes in the opening round of the conference tournament.

Consequently, the positions are virtually the same as far earning the automatic berth is concerned. But for tournament seeding purposes--as well as pride and bragging rights--a clear cut champion will be chosen.

Head-to-head competition is the first Big West tie-breaker. Long Beach and Irvine split the season series, each winning on its home court, so that won’t decide anything.

Records against common opponents is the next tie-breaker, with Nevada in third place. Irvine defeated Nevada earlier in the season and plays Nevada on Saturday at the Bren Center. Nevada swept the season series against Long Beach.

If the Wolf Pack stays put, the Anteaters win the championship and they will be seeded first in the tournament.

“Hey,” Greenberg said, “we’re just trying to get to the tournament.”

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Finally, a good sign: Happy days haven’t returned to the Long Beach baseball program, but things are a little brighter.

Long Beach swept Washington in a four-game series last week to give Coach Dave Snow something to feel good about. It had been a long wait.

“We played a lot better,” said Snow, whose team is 6-5. “It was definitely a step in the right direction for us. We needed anything to gain some momentum.”

The 49ers, ranked 20th by Collegiate Baseball, were impressive on the mound. They had a team earned-run average of one during the series and played well defensively.

“We played good defense for four games, although it’s a little easier to play defense with all the people we were striking out,” Snow said. “You can’t expect to pitch like that every game, but we’re starting to pitch like we thought we would.”

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Consistent force: Senior center Ja’net Davis continues her standout play for the Long Beach women’s basketball team.

Davis, 6 feet 4, was selected Big West co-player of the week for the second time this season. Davis averaged 25 points and 13.5 rebounds in two conference victories last week.

She had 24 points and a career-high 16 rebounds in an 89-87 overtime victory over San Jose on Friday, and scored the winning basket on a 16-foot jumper. She had a career-high 26 points and 11 rebounds in an 82-67 upset of first-place Hawaii on Sunday.

Davis is averaging 14 points, 8.4 rebounds and a conference-leading 3.3 blocks for Long Beach, which has exceeded expectations. Long Beach (14-10, 9-6) is in fifth place in the Big West. Long Beach plays at fourth-place Pacific (14-9, 9-5) on Friday.

49er Notes

Long Beach Athletic Director Dave O’Brien is among the leading candidates for the same post at William & Mary College in Williamsburg, Va. O’Brien flew to Williamsburg on Saturday to interview with William & Mary officials. He was expected to return home today. . . . The men’s volleyball team is 7-2, 4-2 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation. The team is ranked second nationally by Volleyball magazine and the American Volleyball Coaches Assn. . . . The softball team is 3-1. It plays in a tournament at Texas A&M; on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. . . . The women’s tennis team is 5-1.