CSULB Online 49er: v9n86: Midnight comes for Morgan, 49ers

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Midnight comes for Morgan, 49ers

By Phil Witte
On-line Forty-Niner

Battered and bruised but not yet defeated, the Long Beach State men's basketball team did everything it could to prolong Wayne Morgan's career as coach for at least one more game.

The 49ers left everything they had on the court, but ultimately came up agonizingly short of their goal.

In the end, LBSU was unable to stop UC Irvine's two-time Big West Player of the Year Jerry Green, who scored a game-high 23 points to lead the Anteaters to a 72-65 win over the 49ers Thursday in the first round of the Big West Tournament at the Anaheim Convention Center.

"It's been a long five year journey for me, and it's sad to see it end like this," LBSU center Travis Reed said.

The 49ers (13-17) were down, 66-63, and needed a basket and a defensive stop to stay alive with 1:08 to play.

Reed bounded toward the basket, hoping to draw a foul or make a hook shot.

Instead, he was called for a charge, and on the ensuing possession, UCI center Adam Parada made a hook shot from the free throw line to ice the game.

"Jerry Green is a good player and you expect him to do what he does, but Adam Parada came up big for them tonight," Morgan said.

Said UCI coach Pat Douglass: "It was a very intense game and both teams went all out. I'm proud of the team getting over the first obstacle, but now we have to gear up for the next game."

The Anteaters apparently didn't gear up enough, losing Friday in the semifinals to eventual Big West champion UC Santa Barbara, 66-61. The Gauchos claimed their first-ever Big West Tournament title Saturday with a 60-56 victory over Utah State.

In Thursday's contest, the Anteaters opened the game in a man-to-man defense and triple-teamed Reed every time he touched the ball. After hitting a jump shot in the lane two minutes into the game, Reed was held scoreless the rest of the half.

Kicking the ball out to the wing players was not entirely successful, as the 49ers hit only six-of-17 three-pointers in the half.

UCI used an 8-0 run and solid play from Parada and Green inside to go into halftime up, 33-27.

"Staying out of foul trouble early was key for me," Parada said. "I worked on not doing that and I was able to come out full force."

The Anteaters looked hungrier early in the second half, as Green repeatedly drove the baseline, leaving 49er defenders in his wake.

A give-and-go with J.R. Christ gave Green an easy layup and put UCI up, 46-34, with 14:28 to play.

Morgan called a time out to stop the momentum, but the 49ers' body language indicated the game might be over. It then became a matter of pride.

The response was immediate, with LBSU going on a 15-4 run, paced by eight points from Tony Darden, to pull within 50-49 with 8:09 to play. The Anteaters pushed the lead back to 62-54 four minutes later.

The 49ers took back the momentum when Reed, who shot 52.9 percent on free throws on the year, hit two from the line.

On the ensuing possession, Kevin Roberts blocked a shot from a slashing Green, and Reed converted a three-point play to pull the 49ers to within 62-59.

After a Stanislav Zuzak three-point miss, Darden missed two free throws. Green then turned a fast break into a Darrett foul and completed a three-point play to restore the lead to 65-59.

Johnson and Reed hit shots to cut the lead to two, but the Anteaters finished the game on a 7-2 run, hitting five-of-eight free throws during the final two minutes.

For the game, UCI hit 19-of-26 free throws to LBSU's six-of-13.

"Pat came up with a good game plan tonight," Morgan said. "Any time you lose the last game of the season, you're sad. I'm also sad that this is my last game at Long Beach."

Parada finished with 17 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks.

Darden led the 49ers with 22 points, hitting five-of-nine three-pointers. Johnson added 13 points and Darrett finished with nine points and a game-high five assists. Reed ended the game with 13 points and 10 rebounds.