Stanford wins despite strong play by 49ers

Through the early stages of the season, the Long Beach State men's basketball team has played like a unit capable of making a strong run into the postseason. Unfortunately, they only play that way for 25 to 30 minutes each game, as they did during an 86-63 loss to No. 3 Stanford (6-0) Saturday night at The Pyramid.

A crowd of 5,017, the second largest at the venue for men's basketball, watched the 49ers (3-3) hang tough, pulling within five points early in the second half, but Stanford had too many weapons, beating the 49ers inside as well as outside. The Cardinal's stifling defense also took its toll on LBSU, forcing 16 turnovers, stealing the ball six times, and holding LBSU to 43 percent field goal shooting.

"I think their size bothered us and they shot the ball well, you just can't make that many unforced errors against a team that good," 49er Head Coach Wayne Morgan said.

Knowing the daunting task ahead of it, The Beach tried to adjust its game, running less and bringing the ball into the post to Rudy Williams and Travis Reed to establish an inside game. The strategy worked early, with Williams leading The Beach with seven points at the half, but Stanford adjusted and closed both down in the second half.

"They were more physical than we had expected and that caught us off guard and we had to adjust," said Stanford Head Coach Mike Montgomery, a 1968 LBSU alumnus and one-time 49er point guard. "Any road win is significant because the home team and the fans are going to be fired up."

Both defenses played tough early in the first half, shutting down each team's scorers before a Rudy Williams jumper brought the 49ers within one at 11-10. Stanford started getting the ball inside to 6-foot-11 forward Jarron Collins, who scored eight points leading the team on a 19-7 run that took the lead to 13, the highest of the first half. The lead varied between eight and 13 the rest of the half and the Cardinal went into the locker room up 42-32.

The two teams' leading scorers played tough defense, effectively canceling each other out. LBSU guard Rock Lloyd finished the half with six points on two of seven shooting and five turnovers. Stanford guard Casey Jacobsen finished the half with three points on one of seven shooting and two turnovers. Jarron Collins led the visitors with 12 points and seven boards at the break.

The Beach started the second half strong, going on a 7-3 run out of the gate that cut the Stanford lead to 45-40. But teams ranked in the top five do not faze easily and Stanford responded with a 20-8 run, led by guard Ryan Mendez's 10 points.

The 49ers never gave up in the second, but Stanford was too strong inside and outside for the 49ers. A late 9-0 run that put Stanford up 84-59 was the final nail in the coffin for the home side. The wide gulf in ball-handling was also evident throughout the game, as Stanford finished with 24 assists and seven turnovers and LBSU finished with seven assists and 16 turnovers.

Mendez was Stanford's outside force, finishing with a game-high 22 points on nine of 12 shooting, including four of six on threes. Jarron Collins was the inside force, finishing with 20 points on eight of ten shooting, seven rebounds and five assists.

The game was also a homecoming for Stanford's Michael McDonald, who graduated from Long Beach Poly High School in 1997. The point guard finished the game with four points and four assists.

49er forward Grant Stone played valiantly inside against much bigger opposition, finishing with a game-high 10 rebounds, which is his best mark for the season and ties his career high. Lloyd started scoring in the second half, mostly on drives through the lane, but no else on the 49ers was able to provide much offense. Lloyd had five of the team's 10-second half field goals.

49er swingman Lemi Williams finished with 12 points, but most of that came from the free throw line and he only managed a season-low two attempts from beyond the arc.

"They did a good job of denying me the ball and when I did get it I felt out of rhythm," Williams said. "We played hard and they played hard, but they won because they executed better than we did."

Of The Beach's big men, Rudy Williams finished with 13 points and five rebounds and Reed finished with 10 points and four rebounds.

Despite the score, Morgan said the team gained valuable experience from the game.

"What we take away from games like Oregon State and Stanford is experience against tournament quality teams," he said. "If we make a tournament in March, our first round opponents could be either one of those teams."

Next up for The Beach is a visit from Pepperdine Wednesday at 7:35 p.m. at The Pyramid. Two years in a row the Waves have defeated the 49ers in close games, including last year's season opening 76-74 loss at Pepperdine.

Caroline Limuti/Daily Forty-Niner

Long Beach juniors Travis Reed, left, and Ron Johnson sandwich Stanford player in Saturday's home loss.