CS Fullerton Loses Morton but Beats San Jose, 41-40

George McQuarn’s worst nightmare and fondest dream both became reality in one afternoon Saturday.

With less than four minutes gone in the first half of Cal State Fullerton’s game against San Jose State, the Titan coach saw guard Richard Morton, who has been carrying the Titans offensively since Kevin Henderson was injured last month, crash into the basket support after fouling the Spartans’ Ontario Johnson on a breakaway.

At the end, however, McQuarn was raising his fist in the air in jubilation when the Titans managed a 41-40 Pacific Coast Athletic Assn. victory over the Spartans, who were also playing without two key players.

Fullerton (2-2 in PCAA play and 9-7 overall) played most of the game without a pair of players who have a combined average of 35 points a game.

Morton strained a knee ligament, a calf muscle and his left ankle. Trainer Jerry Lloyd said he is “very questionable” for Monday’s game against University of the Pacific.

San Jose State (2-3, 9-5) was missing guard Ward Farris (bruised thigh), who averages nine points, and forward Reggie Owens (hip pointer), who is averaging 12 points and 10 rebounds.

Fullerton trailed, 26-19, at halftime, and McQuarn figured the only chance the Titans had of winning was to take at least 20 seconds off the clock before going into their offense. That ploy, and a tenacious defense, was the difference.

The Titans held the Spartans to just four second-half field goals, two of which came in the last three minutes.

Due to the injuries, the offensive burden would seemingly have fallen on Fullerton’s Kerry Boagni and San Jose’s Ricky Berry. But Boagni was 3 of 12 from the floor and scored just six points. Berry hit only 4 of 13 field-goal attempts but still led all scorers with 14.

The hero for Fullerton was Alexander Hamilton, the Titans’ No. 3 point guard who hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 40-40 with 1:13 on the game clock and five seconds remaining on the 45-second clock.

San Jose had trouble getting the ball to Berry on the ensuing possession. Fullerton’s Eugene Jackson stole the ball from George Puou, was fouled by Johnson and made one of two free throws to give Fullerton the winning margin.

McQuarn thought sophomore Henry Turner’s defense on Berry was a key. Turner, who also scored 12 points and had a game-high nine rebounds, did do a good job of denying Berry the ball, but Bill Berry thought maybe McQuarn deserved the credit.

“They got conservative because they felt they had to to stay in the game,” Berry said. “We seemed to feel obliged to be conservative, too. Maybe I should have made a coaching adjustment. Who knows?”