ARCATA — If February Fun is the prelude to March Madness, the California Collegiate Athletic Association has plenty of enjoyment to offer heading into the final two weeks of conference action. This week's excitement sends the Humboldt State Lumberjacks on the road for a Thursday game at San Francisco State and Saturday encounter with Cal Poly Pomona.
The week begins with a three-way tie for first place, shared by Humboldt State, Chico State and Cal Poly Pomona, all with 13-5 league records. Those three teams have clinched a berth in the CCAA Championship Tournament, as have Cal State San Bernardino (12-6), Sonoma State (11-7), Cal State L.A. (10-8) and Cal State Dominguez Hills (10-8). The final spot in the field of eight is likely to go to Cal State Stanislaus, currently holding a 9-9 record. No other CCAA team has more than five wins.
"They CCAA is comprised of 12 very good basketball teams," HSU head coach
Steve Kinder said. "This is a huge conference that tests you from November to March. To remain on top of the standings this time of year says a lot about the character of the young men that battle for us day after day."
On-the-Air
Every Lumberjack basketball game is broadcast live over the local airwaves on KATA, 1340 AM, beginning with the pregame show 15 minutes prior to game time. Bicoastal Media Sports Director J.B. Mathers describes the action from courtside.
Live Streaming
Audio and video of home games are also streamed live over the Internet. The UStream format allows an interactive chat between listeners during the webcast. The specific URL for access is located at
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/humboldt-state-athletics .
Live Stats
All Lumberjack basketball home games can be tracked online by using the Live Stats feature on www.hsujacks.com. Real time statistics, momentum tracker and other information are included on the game viewer. The feature can be found at http://www.sidearmstats.com/humboldt/mbball/ . This week's live stats from San Francisco State will be available at http://athletics.sfsu.edu/men/basketball/livestats/xlive.htm and the Cal Poly Pomona game can be followed at http://www.broncoathletics.com/custompages/mbblive.html.
Head-to-Head
On Jan. 12 the Lumberjacks claimed a 74-64 win over Cal Poly Pomona. Humboldt State pulled to within one game of the Broncos with a 10-11 record in the all-time series. …HSU extended its win streak against San Francisco State to eight straight with an 87-74 defeat of San Francisco State at home on Jan. 14. The Lumberjacks still trail the Gators all-time, however, with 71 victories to SFSU's 90. San Francisco State was actually Humboldt State's very first collegiate opponent in a rivalry that began when the schools split two games in 1931.
Head Coach Steve Kinder
The "Kinder Era" began last year with a 26-4 record and a regular season conference title, finishing Kinder's inaugural season of 2010-11 with high standards to match in the future. But the National Coach of the Year hasn't been resting on his laurels, instead attending to the myriad of duties from recruiting to planning another run to the title. After serving as the Jacks' No. 1 assistant for the 20 seasons, Kinder took over for his mentor, Tom Wood, in 2010-11. As an assistant, he played critical roles in recruiting and coaching while helping the Jacks' 217-77 record achieved during the past decade. Kinder is a former HSU basketball player who was a member of the 1984-85 NCAC championship team. He previously served as a graduate assistant coach for the Lumberjacks (1986-88).
Projected Starters - Humboldt State
G - #3, D.J. Broome, 5-5, Sr., Castro Valley
G - #4 Brandon Sperling, 6-3, Sr., Fresno
G - #2 Scott Clark, 6-4, Sr., Pleasanton
F - #21 Randy Hunter, 6-6, Sr., Santa Maria
F - #22 Kyle Baxter, 6-9, Sr., Sacramento
Projected Starters - San Francisco State
G - #13, Nefi Perdomo, 6-1, Jr., Oakland
G - #33, Tyler Brown, 6-0, Sr., Oakland
F - #15, Daniel Trammel, 6-3, Sr., Oceanside
F - #44, James Albright, 6-6, Jr., Oakland
C - #50, Max Fodor, 6-8, So., Fremont
Projected Starters - Cal State San Bernardino
G - #22, Matt Rosser, 6-5, Sr., Temecula
G - #33, Daniel Rodriguez, 6-1, Fr., Covina
G - #25, Mitchel Anderson, 6-4, Jr., Temecula
F - #11, DeRonn Scott, 6-6, So., Etiwanda
C - #5, Tyquan Brown, 6-7, Sr., Bronx, N.Y.
Rankings
The first of the NCAA Division II West Region rankings of the season will be released Friday and will continue weekly until the championships field selection announcement March 4. An automatic berth in the postseason is awarded to the team that wins the CCAA Championship Tournament, but not the regular-season title. The regular season's final standings determine what schools will gain a spot in the CCAA Tournament field of eight and the event's seeding.
Lumberjack Notes
Having clinched a berth in the CCAA tournament, the Lumberjacks move on to the task of securing home court advantage in the first round. That advantage will be bestowed upon the first four teams in the conference standings, who will host the next four, beginning on Feb. 28. The winners advance to the semifinals and finals, hosted this year by UC San Diego. …Before thoughts turn to the postseason, however, there are four games to play, all of which will influence the seeding. Of the three teams currently tied for first place, Cal Poly Pomona is the only one that will play all of its remaining games at home. Both Chico State and Humboldt State travel for two games this weekend, then come home to finish the season with two more the following week.
Trending
Humboldt State's four-game homestand, completed last week, saw an abrupt surge in shooting accuracy. The Jacks shot .520 from the field in Lumberjack Arena after posting a .383 mark in their previous four games, all away from home. HSU's defense has been consistent, however, holding opponents to .400 mark at their own venues and .426 in Arcata. …Senior forward Randy Hunter pumped up his always sturdy effort, averaging 16.3 points per game and 6.8 rebounds during the four home games. More startling, however, has been the improved play of Brandon Sperling. The senior guard jumped from an average of 8.3 points per game during the four away games, nearly doubling the mark to contribute 16.3 ppg during the past four home games. …Though the trends may appear to illustrate different results on the road compared to home games, but the Jacks have posted a 7-1 record during that stretch. Overall, HSU has won 10 of its last 11 games.
Opponents' Notes
San Francisco State's chances to gain a berth in the CCAA tournament could be considered a long shot. The Gators would have to win all four of their remaining games while Cal State Stanislaus would have to lose all four of its games. Even then, UC San Diego and Cal State East Bay would each have to lose at least once. …Junior guard Nefi Perdomo continues his stellar season, leading the Gators in scoring with an average of 15.0 points per game. Junior forward James Albright is also scoring in double figures, averaging 12.1 points per game. …After briefly stumbling during an early January stretch of games, the Broncos have bounced back to win six of their last seven games and remain in the hunt for the CCAA regular season title. Like the Lumberjacks, their only recent loss was to Chico State at Chico. …Mitchel Anderson continues to lead Cal Poly Pomona in scoring, averaging 14.0 points per game for the defense-oriented Broncos. As a team, CPP has held opponents to an average of just under 40 percent shooting from the field. …Cal Poly Pomona brings a 16-5 record into this week's action.
Kinder's Comments
"Our team is playing its best basketball of the season, peaking at the right time. That's been our goal since August – to be playing our best when the CCAA postseason arrives. We have learned how to win close games and put away very good opponents.". … "I'm proud of our senior leadership. D.J. Broome, Brandon Sperling, Scott Clark, Kyle Baxter and Randy Hunter are focused and determined to win another CCAA Championship." …"(San Francisco State) is a tough, scrappy team, with a premier player on their roster in Nefi Perdomo. Limiting our turnovers and rebounding will key the success against the Gators." … " If we take care of business on Thursday night against SFSU, Saturday night's game becomes a CCAA showdown in Southern California." … "We like our match up against CPP. We have beaten them the past three contests and have confidence we can do it again." … "They have a difficult defense to break. We 'll need to use our travel day to prepare carefully." …"All systems are go. A championship run is on and we will embrace it."
