SEASIDE — (Feb. 17) After building a comfortable lead, Humboldt State held off a hard-charging Cal State Monterey Bay squad to claim a 106-91 victory in a California Collegiate Athletic Association men's basketball game Thursday.

Earning its third road victory in its last three games, Humboldt State improved to 19-3 overall and 14-3 in the CCAA. Cal State Monterey Bay dropped to 11-11 overall and 8-9 in league, losing for the third time this year to the Lumberjacks.

Kevin Johnson and Devin Peal both scored 26 points to lead the Lumberjacks, who had five players hit double figures. Grayson Moyer scored 15 points, Will Sheufelt added 15 and Jeremiah Ward had 11 for the Jacks.

Richard Jenkins scored 30 points to pace CSUMB, with both Jose Sanchez and D'Shon Cannon scoring 15 for the Otters. Augie Johnston added 11 and Aeshraff Dabbas scored 10, but it wasn't enough for the Otters, who shot 44 percent from the field to Humboldt State's 66 percent.

HSU's offensive game plan was effective from the start, with the inside game clicking behind the efforts of Johnson and Peal. Johnson scored his third layup of the game to provide a 10-7 lead, keeping HSU's hold on the paint secure.

CSU Monterey Bay countered again when Sanchez hit a layup and three-pointer to move the Otters up, 12-10, but that was the last lead they would hold in the first half. The Lumberjacks took control with a 16-0 run that started with a Johnson layup and finally ended with a three-pointer by Ward.

As the half headed toward its conclusion, the Otters managed to pull within single digits, trailing 33-24 after another layin by Sanchez. But HSU kept its advantage safe, Ward's short jumper securing a 48-35 at the break.

Humboldt State threatened to put the game out of definite reach early, moving up by 18 points on two occasions. But each time the Otters showed resilience, whittling it down to 66-55 on a dunk by Mitchell.

Jenkins kept the in the game with his own interior efforts, with consecutive putbacks following offensive rebounds. He found his perimeter game with just over 10 minutes remaining, nailing a three-pointer to cut the lead to 72-63.

Offense ruled as the game headed to the stretch, the teams matching points. Humboldt had to work for its, with Johnson providing much of the damage, while the Otters scored most of their points from the free throw line.

Cal State Monterey Bay made its final rush during the final four minutes, dropping the Jacks lead to only six points. But Moyer drove across the lane for a layin and hit the free throw after being fouled, setting up a slew of HSU foul shots down in the closing minute that sealed the victory.

Humboldt State stays on the road for Saturday's game, driving up to the Bay Area to face San Francisco State at 7:30 p.m.

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