ARCATA, Calif. – As the calendar changes to the final month of the regular season, Humboldt State men's basketball has the opportunity to create some separation from the bottom half of the conference. The Lumberjacks (14-5, 8-5) play a pair of road games this weekend, at San Francisco State on Friday and at Sonoma State the following night. Both games are scheduled to begin at 7:30 p.m., following the women's games.
 
"First of all, we have to worry about each opponent, but even before that we really need to worry about ourselves," said Assistant Coach Cy Vandermeer. "What we are doing is mixing things to see what is the right chemistry with the guys on the floor so we can get the most production. I believe we have a lot of skill on this team, so it really comes down to getting all of that skill to play together and have a great night.

The first game that the Jacks played against San Francisco State (11-8, 5-8) this season turned into an instant classic. Down two with just seconds to play, the Jacks drew up a play that would ultimately force overtime. Malik Morgan took the ball out of bounds in front of his own bench and whipped an overhead pass to Rakim Brown under the basket. The senior took a dribble, gathered the rock, and went up strong to convert the layup and force the extra period. HSU shot 50 percent from the field in the overtime session and outscored SF State 18-13 to earn the win.
 
The Green and Gold matched up with Sonoma State (12-7, 7-6) the previous night. The Jacks earned the 15-point victory, thanks in part to the 14 made 3-pointers the home team hit. The Seawolves are averaging 66.3 points per game, considerably fewer that HSU's conference-leading 85.5 points per game. Sonoma State has not scored more than 75 points in a game this season. The Jacks sit a game ahead of Sonoma in the CCAA standings, good for fifth in the conference
 
"We are really going to attach San Francisco, and as soon as that game is over we'll dive into Sonoma State and how we can win that next night," said Vandermeer. "I think for our guys, that one game focus will allow us to prepare to compete at a championship level each night."
 
The Jacks return home the following week to host Cal State East Bay and Cal State Monterey Bay on Feb. 11 and 13, respectively.