ARCATA — Leaving the lights of the Los Angeles area behind, the Lumberjacks head home for two California Collegiate Athletic Association men's basketball games this week. First up is Thursday's encounter with Cal State Monterey Bay, and Saturday's foe is Cal State East Bay. Both games are set for 7:30 p.m. tip-offs, or 20 minutes following the women's game.

Humboldt State will try to even the season series with both of this week's opponents. The CSUEB Pioneers defeated the Lumberjacks, 78-70 on January 11 in Hayward. A day later HSU fell to the Otters, 70-61 in Seaside.

Both CSUMB and CSUEB are a game behind the Jacks in the CCAA standings, sharing last place with 4-12 league records. The Pioneers are 8-15 overall and the Otters 5-15 for the season.

Head-to-Head
Dating back to their mutual affiliation with the Northern California Athletic Conference in the 80's and 90's, Humboldt State and Cal State East Bay have faced off 82 times, HSU winning 34 times and CSUEB 48. Last year the teams split, the Pioneers earning an 88-82 win in Hayward and Jacks scoring an 86-78 win in Arcata. …In January, Humboldt State fell for the first time in the historical series against CSU Monterey Bay, and now holds a 17-1 advantage.

On-the-Air
Humboldt State basketball can be once again heard over the airwaves on KATA, 1340 AM, the North Coast's ESPN radio affiliate. BiCoastal Media Sports Director J.B. Mathers describes the action. Airtime is 7:15 p.m. The broadcast will also be streamed live at http://socialstreamingplayer.crystalmedianetworks.com/radio/kataam.

Streaming VIdeo
Watch the Jacks' games live online by directing your internet browser to http://www.ustream.tv/channel/humboldt-state-athletics. Video and audio begin 15 minutes prior to tip-off.
 
LiveStats
Live statistics for both of this week's games can be accessed at http://www.sidearmstats.com/humboldt/mbball/scoreboard.aspx

Projected Starters
Humboldt State Lumberjacks
Guard – #22 Cody Kale, 6-3, 190, Jr. from Rocklin
Guard – #24 Austin Bryan, 6-4, 200, Jr. from Wenatchee, Wash.
Forward – #32 Darren Turpin, 6-4, 205, Sr. from Compton
Forward – #2 Deaundray Robinson, 6-5, 185, Jr. from Baton Rouge, La.
Forward – #55 Brett McConnell, 6-7, 225, Jr. from Mountain View

CSU Monterey Bay Otters
Guard – #3 Brandon Cole, 6-1, 175, Jr. from Vallejo
Guard – #4 Brandon Ward, 6-0, 185, Sr. from Riverside
Forward – #5 Alex Fertig, 6-3, 195, Fr. from Fresno
Forward – #23 Kevin Loustale, 6-6, 245, Sr. from Chico
Center– #40 Chris Gallop, 6-9, 205, Jr. from Vallejo

CSU East Bay Pioneers
Guard – #5 Jacari Whitfield, 5-7, 160, So. from San Francisco
Guard – #13 Jason Smith, 6-3, 195, Sr. from Troy, Idaho
Foward – #24 Vincent Capelino, 6-6, 190, Sr. from South Lake Tahoe
Forward – #33 Ryan Hebebrand, 6-5, 220, Jr. from Livermore
Forward – #35 Nick Marshall, 6-6, 195, Sr. for Vallejo

Injury Report
HSU's roster remains relatively injury-free, the lone exception Aaron Chamberlain's lingering concussion symptoms.

Lumberjack Notes
Six conference games remain before the qualifying teams for the CCAA Championship Tournament are determined. Humboldt State currently stands ninth in the standings, two games behind Sonoma State. Eight squads earn berths in the postseason event. …The season-ending schedule is in the Jacks' favor, with HSU hosting four of its last six games of the 2012-13 regular season while the closest team they're chasing, Sonoma State, plays four on the road and two at home. One of the Seawolves' remaining games in Rohnert Park is against the Lumberjacks on Feb. 22. "We are in the hunt for a playoff berth," HSU head coach Steve Kinder said.  "We feel we have an excellent opportunity to reach our goals of making the tournament because of our remaining schedule." …Brett McConnell's double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds against Cal State San Bernardino was the third of the season achieved by a Lumberjack on the current roster.  Rakim Brown scored 24 points and hauled down 11 rebounds against Cal State Stanislaus on Feb. 8, an Deaundray Robinson had 10 points and 15 rebounds against CSU San Bernardino on Jan. 3.

CSU Monterey Bay Notes
Since defeating the Lumberjacks in early January, the Otters have lost seven of their next eight games. Last week they fell at home to Cal State L.A., 60-50, and Cal State Dominguez, 65-58. …Alex Fertig, a 6-3 forward from Fresno, leads CSUMB in scoring with an average of 14.3 points per game. Also scoring in double figures is Brandon Ward, a 6-0 senior guard who averages 12.3 points per contest. The Otters' leading rebounder is Kevin Loustale, a 6-6 senior forward from Chico who grabs an average of 5.8 boards per game. …Loustale is the lone CSUMB player ranking among the top five in a CCAA statistics category, sitting in the No. 4 position with a field goal shooting percentage of 58.5.

CSU East Bay Notes
Back on January 11, the Pioneers defeated the Lumberjacks, 78-70. Since then, they've lost nine consecutive games. CSUEB lost twice in its own gym last week, defeated by Cal State L.A. (54-35) and Cal State Dominguez Hills (53-51). In the tight game against CSUDH, the Pioneers hit only 29 percent of their shots from the field. …Junior guard Gabe Kindred is the CSUEB scoring leader with an average of 12.3 points per game.  Senior forward Jurrell Turner is the Pioneers' next best point producer with 8.8 per contest. Nick Marshall pulls down an average of 6.7 rebounds per game to top his team in that category.

Kinder's Comments
"I'm proud of our efforts and hustle despite our results from the past weekend's contests down south against UC San Diego and Cal State San Bernardino.  Close to 4,000 people packed into their arena (at UC San Diego) created a big-time college atmosphere that made it a very difficult place to play." …"We need to continue playing Lumberjack basketball, uptempo, fast-breaking, energized play.  We will continue to use pressure defense to create opportunities for open court scoring chances." … "Both games this weekend are crucial for us. Wins distance us from the bottom of the pack and move us toward clinching a spot in the CCAA tournament. I like our chances of making a run at a tournament berth."