LOS ANGELES, Calif. -- With under 30 seconds remaining, Marlon Ruffin hit a pair of free throws to give the Cal Poy Humboldt Lumberjacks a 75-73 victory over the Cal State Los Angeles Golden Eagles. With the win, the North Coast squad clinched it's first postseason appearance since the 2018-2019 season, finishing the regular season with a 13-15 record and 11-11 in conference play. Ruffin led the way with 18 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals. 

Cam Timmons got things going for the 'Jacks when he made a layup in the paint at the 19:20 mark. The Golden Eagles proceeded to go on a 10-0 run that gave them some early momentum. Humboldt chipped away and eventually tied the game at 20 when Bryce Mitchell hit a three-pointer at the 10:09 mark. The 'Jacks regained the lead, 30-29, after Marlon Ruffin converted on a free-throw that capped off a three-point play. Cal State LA finished the half on a 13-7 run and held a 42-37 advantage at the half.

With 11 minutes to go, Kyjuan Cannady of Cal State LA converted on a three-pointer that gave the Golden Eagles their largest lead of the game, 62-52. Humboldt responded with a burst of offense from Cam Timmons and Ian Krishnan, as they went on a 14-2 run and quickly regained the lead in just under four minutes. Malek Davis made it a five point game and gave the 'Jacks their largest lead of the game, 73-68, after sinking a free-throw with just 2:51 to play. After the Golden Eagles tied the game at 73 with just 40 seconds left in regulation, Marlon Ruffin drove inside and got fouled, resulting in a pair of free-throws. Free-throws have been Humboldt's biggest kryptonite late in games this season, but with their season on the line and an opportunity to send Humboldt to the CCAA Tournament, Ruffin proved to be clutch and hit both free-throws. The 'Jacks prevailed and punched their ticket as time expired, earning a must-win game on the road 75-73 over Cal State LA. 

POST GAME QUOTES 
"I am extremely proud of our staff and the guys for winning this game," said head coach Tae Norwood. "It was a win or go home kind of game and we didn't want to put our fate in the hands of somebody else. We started off slow and went down but battled our way back. We were down as many as 10 points two different times in the second half and I told the guys to stay the course, take one possession at a time, and continue to get stops on the defensive end. I thought Ian, Marlon, and Cam were huge down the stretch. I can't be more proud of the guys for getting back to the conference tournament."

Norwood also stated, "We had four goals we wanted to accomplish this year. One goal was to double our conference wins from last year, which we did. Another goal was to make the conference tournament, which we did. We wanted to compete with the top of the league, which we did. And our last goal is to possibly make the NCAA tournament, which making the conference tournament gives us a chance to do that."

When asked about what seeing Sonoma State for a third time this season might look like, Norwood said, "We are going to enjoy this win tonight and first thing tomorrow we are going to meet to start preparing for Sonoma. We were able to get the best of them early in the year but they got us back right after the break. We are going to have to make some adjustments from the last time we played them and hopefully we shoot the ball well. It's great to come off a big win going into the tournament because it gives us a little bit of momentum and I hope we get to playing our best basketball come March."

NOTABLE STATS
- Marlon Ruffin had 18 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals
- Cam Timmons posted his third double-double of the season, notching 14 points on 70% shooting and 11 rebounds
- Ian Krishnan added 12 points
- Humboldt posted the second-highest free throw percentage of the season, shooting 90.9% 
- The 'Jacks had 15 points off turnovers compared to the Golden Eagles' 10 points
- Humboldt ended the night shooting 46.8% (29-of-62), while Cal State LA came in at 43.1% (28-of-65)

UP NEXT - CCAA TOURNAMENT
"The field is set, and the seeds are finalized for the 2023 CCAA Men's Basketball Tournament March 2-4 in Turlock, Calif.

The #4 seed versus #5 seed game will feature Cal Poly Humboldt (13-15) and Sonoma State (12-16). Both teams tied at 11-11 in the standings and split their two head-to-head matchups. The Lumberjacks captured the higher seed over the Seawolves because of its season sweep of Cal State East Bay."

See full CCAA release here

Thursday, March 2 - Quarterfinals
Game 1: #6 Chico State vs. #3 San Francisco State, Noon
Game 2: #5 Sonoma State vs. #4 Cal Poly Humboldt, 2:30 p.m.
 
Friday, March 3 - Semifinals
Game 3: Winner Game 1 vs. #2 Cal State San Marcos, Noon
Game 4: Winner Game 2 vs. #1 Cal State San Bernardino, 2:30 p.m.
 
Saturday, March 4 - Championship
Game 5: Winner Game 3 vs. Winner Game 4, 5 p.m.

To purchase tickets for the tournament, click here.



For more information on Cal Poly Humboldt men's basketball, please visit humboldtathletics.com and follow us on all social media platforms.