ARCATA – Humboldt State clinched a berth in the California Collegiate Athletic Association Tournament after securing two victories over the weekend, including a crucial 69-64 win over Cal State Los Angeles. The Jacks have just four games left to determine their ranking in the CCAA tournament and hope to gain a home-court advantage by remaining in the top four spots of conference.

"Every game here on out is important for us in the post-season run," said head coach Joddie Gleason. "We've already done the first step in getting into the conference tournament. Now the second step is to be able to host, so these next four games are important."

The Jacks travel to play the San Francisco State Gators on Thursday, Feb. 16, before heading further south to take on the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos on Saturday, Feb. 18. Both games are scheduled for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff time.

Currently, HSU is tied for third with Cal State L.A. with a 12-6 CCAA record, 16-6 overall. Cal Poly Pomona is right behind the two teams, standing in fifth with a 15-7 overall record and 11-7 against conference opponents. San Francisco State currently sits in 10th at 7-17 overall and 6-12 in conference, trying to move up to extend its season.

Head-to-Head

Earlier this season HSU beat SFSU in a tight 66-61 contest to bring the all-time series within three victories. The Gators still hold the upper hand in the series, however, 31-28.

Cal Poly Pomona and Humboldt State have kept the overall series close, with the Broncos taking a one-game lead (7-6) after defeating the Jacks 83-79 earlier this season in overtime.

Regional Rankings
The first Regional Rankings were released this week by the NCAA, placing the Jacks in the ninth spot in the West Region. Rankings will be released weekly for the remainder of the season with the NCAA announcing in March the field of 64 who will advance to the championship tournament. Of the 64, eight teams from the West Region will receive a berth in the tournament.  

Five of the 10 spots are held by CCAA member schools, topped by UC San Diego. Cal State Monterey Bay stands in fourth, just above Cal State Los Angeles. Cal Poly Pomona ranks seventh and HSU rounds out the fifth team in the No. 9 seat.

1	UC San Diego
2	Alaska-Anchorage
3	Grand Canyon
4	Cal State Monterey Bay
5	Cal State L.A.
6	Western Washington
7	Cal Poly Pomona
8	Dixie State
9	Humboldt State
10	Montana State Billings

Multimedia

Every Lumberjack basketball game is broadcast live over the local airwaves on KATA 1340 AM, beginning with the pre-game show 15 minutes prior to game time. Bicoastal Media Sports Director J.B. Mathers describes the action from courtside. Fans can follow the action live on the hsujacks.com website via the Jacks' ustream account at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/humboldt-state-athletics. Thursday's game against San Francisco State will have up-to-the-minute updates through the Gators' live stats, found at http://athletics.sfsu.edu/women/basketball/livestats/xlive.htm. Live stats will also be available for Saturday's game against the Broncos at http://www.broncoathletics.com/custompages/wbblive.html.

Lumberjack Notes

Humboldt State enters the weekend hoping to extend a three-game winning streak. The Jacks average 66.6 points per game, while giving up 61.4 ppg on average. HSU leads the conference in three-point field goal percentage with .358, rank second in its rebounding offense (averaging 38.7 rebounds per game) and place third in field goal percentage with .412—behind No. 1-ranked UC San Diego and CSULA.

Lisa Petty leads HSU by averaging 13.0 ppg, followed by Kayla Williams with 11.8 ppg and Caitie Richards with 10.5 ppg. Williams ranks third in the CCAA leader board with 85 total assists, averaging 3.9 per game. Bree Halsey continues to control the boards for the Jacks, averaging 9.4 rebounds per game to put her second in conference, but has been having help from her teammates as well. Petty averages 6.5 rpg and Whitney Howard grabs 5.4 shots off the boards on average each game. Patrice Saindon's high-energy defensive tactics place her in the No. 2 spot in conference for steals, averaging 2.3 per game.

Gator Notes

SFSU knows the pressure is on in these last few games to move up in the CCAA rankings. The Gators come off a 76-57 loss to Cal State Monterey Bay where the Gators were out-rebounded 35-24, but Gleason knows the team is a good rebounding team. Gleason is also aware of the attacking threat the Gators can pose, led by Nicole Hicks, who averages 12.9 ppg.

"San Francisco State does a great job getting to the basket off the dribble and is a consistent rebounding team," said Gleason. "Those are the keys we need to focus on defensively to succeed."

Bronco Notes

Cal Poly Pomona has not yet clinched a playoff berth, but the Broncos are right behind the Jacks in the standings. CPP comes off two close losses, 62-67 to CSUMB and 51-53 to Cal State East Bay, so the Broncos are looking to rebound as a team. Led by Megan Ford's 14.1 ppg and Sarah Semenero's 12.5 ppg, the Broncos average 65.5 ppg as a team and limit their opponents to 58.3 ppg (third best in CCAA). Ford ranks just under Halsey in rebounding, grabbing 9.3 boards on average each game, followed by Charlene Popoff, averaging 7.5 rpg.

"Looking at our previous game, CPP killed us on the boards," said Gleason. "That has to be a focus for us as a group. They have two good post players, so it's imperative to try to slow them down and keep them off the boards."

Gleason's Gabs

"SFSU is always a difficult opponent at their place. It seems like every year it comes down to a last-second shot. They're trying to get a spot in the tournament so it'll be a big game for them" ... "The game at CPP is one of those pivotal games as far as the placement in the tournament goes. We felt like we let the earlier game get away down the stretch so that will be in the minds of our players. They definitely want to get it back." ... "The Broncos have playoff experience and determination. They found a way to win against us, which is something they're good at."