SEASIDE — Taking control of the paint, Humboldt State held off a resilient Cal State Monterey Bay squad to claim an 86-80 win on Saturday.

Pacing HSU's offense was its dominant post players, Devin Peal and Cy Vandermeer. The Otters were unable to find a defensive answer to that duo, Peal finishing with a game-high 32 points while Vandermeer put up 18 and 17 rebounds.

The victory improves Humboldt State's overall record to 10-3 on the season and 5-1 in the California Collegiate Athletic Association. CSU Monterey Bay fell to 2-10 overall and 1-5 in league.

After building a 14-point lead, HSU had to survive an Otters' rally that pulled them twice within three points in the waning minutes. Juston Willis hit three-pointers on two straight possessions, both times trimming the margin within a single basket.
 
Vandermeer answered the first time with a layin and free throw after being fouled, and the Jacks were awarded free throws following a bench technical foul on the second occasion. Will Sheufelt calmly sank both chances, and hit two more in the final minute to help preserve the win.

Cal State Monterey Bay was led offensively by D'Shon Cannon's 23 points, while Joe Mitchell added 15. WIllis had 14 and Jose Sanchez 13 in a losing effort for the Otters.

In the first half, deft shooting from the perimeter and great ball-sharing allowed the Otters to work back from an early deficit. Cannon single-handedly took back the momentum, scoring seven straight points with two acrobatic layins and a long three-pointer.

Sanchez kept it going with a three-pointer to help CSU Monterey Bay move up by five points, but Humboldt State remained intent on its task of going inside. Peal rewarded the efforts with three straight layups, and Vandermeer added another to put the Jacks back on top, 42-40 at halftime.

After HSU stretched the lead to eight on Sheufelt's three-pointer early in the second half, CSUMB again mounted a charge. Cannon scored on one drive before taking it inside again, this time making the basket and converting a free throw to pull the Otters within one point at 55-54.

The ebbs and flows continued, HSU moving up by five on Vandermeer's layin and the Otters countering with penetration by Cannon and Willis. Humboldt State fashioned a nine-point lead with its persistence on the interior, Peal, Vandermeer and Grayson Moyer finding the hoop repeatedly.

Humboldt State returns home this week to take on Chico State on Friday and Cal State Stanislaus on Saturday. Both games tip off at 7:30 p.m. in the East Gym.

Humboldt State vs CSU Monterey Bay
01/12/08 7:30pm at Seaside, CA [Otter Sports Center]
At Seaside, CA [Otter Sports Center]
HUMBOLDT STATE 86, CSU MONTEREY BAY 80
HUMBOLDT STATE (9-3, 4-1 CCAA)
PEAL, Devin 14-22 4-10 32; VANDERMEER, Cy 8-15 2-5 18; SHEUFELT, Will 1-6
6-6 9; GREEN, Nick 4-4 0-0 8; MOYER, Grayson 3-7 1-2 7; SPADA, Ernie 0-6 4-4
4; SMITH, Everett 1-2 0-0 3; DEL RIO, Efren 1-2 0-0 3; FIGGATT, Jameson 1-2
0-0 2. Totals 33-66 17-27 86.
CSU MONTEREY BAY (2-9, 1-4 CCAA)
CANNON, D'Shon 8-14 5-5 23; MITCHELL, Joe 6-11 2-4 15; WILLIS, Juston 5-9
1-1 14; SANCHEZ, Jose 5-12 0-0 13; BECKER, Stephen 2-4 0-2 6; JOHNSTON,
Augie 3-10 0-0 6; KERNODLE, Jacob 1-5 1-5 3; VON PERTZ, Zach 0-0 0-0 0.
Totals 30-65 9-17 80.
Humboldt State................   44   42  -   86
CSU Monterey Bay..............   42   38  -   80
3-point goals--Humboldt State 3-12 (DEL RIO, Efren 1-1; SHEUFELT, Will 1-3;
SMITH, Everett 1-1; MOYER, Grayson 0-2; SPADA, Ernie 0-4; PEAL, Devin 0-1),
CSU Monterey Bay 11-23 (SANCHEZ, Jose 3-7; WILLIS, Juston 3-4; CANNON,
D'Shon 2-5; BECKER, Stephen 2-4; MITCHELL, Joe 1-1; JOHNSTON, Augie 0-2).
Fouled out--Humboldt State-None, CSU Monterey Bay-JOHNSTON, Augie.
Rebounds--Humboldt State 38 (VANDERMEER, Cy 17), CSU Monterey Bay 32
(MITCHELL, Joe 17). Assists--Humboldt State 8 (MOYER, Grayson 4), CSU
Monterey Bay 10 (CANNON, D'Shon 4). Total fouls--Humboldt State 15, CSU
Monterey Bay 19. Technical fouls--Humboldt State-None, CSU Monterey
Bay-TEAM. A-487