ARCATA — In 29 years as head coach of the Lumberjacks, Humboldt State head coach Tom Wood has seen it all. But that same phrase wasn't true prior to the Jacks' 51-49 win over Cal State Stanislaus on Friday.

After scoring only a single field goal in the first 18 minutes, 45 seconds of the game, the Jacks made their first six shots of the second half to rally from 21 points down to claim the win. By doing so, they maintained a share of first place in the California Collegiate Athletic Association, improving to 18-6 overall and 15-4 in league.

It took three blocked shots in the game's final 36 seconds by the Jacks' big man, Brian Morris, to keep CSU Stanislaus from the upset victory. Morris' final rejection was on a driving layup by the Warriors' Dwight Jones as time expired.

Another of the Jacks' heroes was junior guard Ernie Spada, who drained four 3-pointers in the second half to help his team pull back into contention. Spada tied teammate Kevin Atkins for game-high honors with 12 points each.

Boxscore

Cal State Stanislaus was led by Jones' 12 points, and Chad Johnson added 11. The Warriors dropped to 10-14 on the season and 6-13 in league.

"It's a credit to our players' character, and resolve that they were able to come back the way they did," HSU head coach Tom Wood said. "They played true to themselves, gave themselves a chance to win, and then finished it off."

Humboldt State stumbled badly following the opening tip, missing its first 10 shots from the field. Seven minutes into the game the Jacks had yet to score a point, but CSUS managed only a 5-0 lead.

CSUS finally took charge when Jones blew past the Jacks' defense for an easy layin, then made a steal and coasted in for a dunk to give the Warriors' a 16-4 lead. The Jacks' basket remained sealed shut, as layups rolled off the rim to help CSUS gain a 26-5 lead.

Three-pointers by Elliot Babcock-Krenk and Atkins put up more points on HSU's side of the scoreboard in 15 seconds then the Jacks had managed in the first 18 minutes. But Johnson hit three free throws to finish off the first half's scoring, sending the Warriors to the lockerroom with a 31-11 lead.

"It's a half  I'd like to forget, but I probably won't," Wood said. "We didn't play with any intensity. We missed layups, we missed open jump shots. There wasn't anything we did good in the first half."

As badly as the Jacks struggled in the first half, they quickly righted themselves in the second. Morris started the period with a layup, and Babcock-Krenk hit a 3-pointer to begin a 15-2 run.

Cal State Stanislaus briefly stopped the surge, but another 3-pointer by Spada pulled the Jacks within a digit at 35-34. Once again, the Warriors pulled ahead, moving up 45-36 with 7:05 left to play.

The Lumberjacks finally took their first lead of the game when Zac Tiedeman hit a 3-pointer with 3:52 left to play. The Warriors tied the game on two free throws by Jones before Atkins' jumper with 1:17 to play put the Jacks ahead for the second and final time.

Johnson and Marcus Lever both had shots rejected by Morris before the final attempt by Jones was swatted away. The Warriors ended the game the way HSU had started, missing their final seven shots from the field.

The Lumberjacks head north to Chico for Saturday's game against Chico State.