Fullerton Gets Well by Downing Middle Tennessee State, 77-69

By the time Cal State Fullerton made it to Wyoming’s wide-open spaces, the Titans were a sick-and-tired team.

They were sick with all manner of ailments. And they were tired, not only from their 13-hour trip from Fullerton.

They also were tired of losing, after ruining their 5-0 start with a 29-point loss to Colorado State and a 12-point loss to UCLA.

Coach John Sneed, still ailing from the flu, was worried.

“They say a team is a reflection of its coach,” Sneed said before the Titans played Middle Tennessee State in the first round of the Cowboy Shootout. “If they play like I feel, we’re in trouble.”

Instead, the Titans’ 77-69 victory over the Blue Raiders in the Casper Events Center Friday night proved just the tonic.

“For the moment, a win makes everyone on the team feel better,” Sneed said after the Titans dispatched Middle Tennessee State. Fullerton took a 15-2 lead at the outset and never trailing, although the Blue Raiders made several runs.

Fullerton’s balance had seemed dangerously close to coming undone the night before, at a practice at which leading scorer Cedric Ceballos took an elbow to the eye that opened a cut requiring stitches.

At the same practice, reserve Ron Caldwell and Sneed had verbal exchanges that resulted in Caldwell being on the bench in street clothes Friday. And starting center John Sykes, who practiced sparingly, realized he wouldn’t be able to start because his eyes remain red, irritated by a reaction to eyedrops.

But Fullerton pulled it together against Middle Tennessee State, a team that has played in a postseason tournament in each of the past five years, but is off to a 4-4 start with a young team this season.

“We had been in a rut,” Sneed said. “We’ve had three or four bad practices, whether it was the flu, injuries or internal things with a couple of players. There’s nothing like a win to get you hugging in the locker room again. It was a good win on the road, against a good team and a quality coach.”

Ceballos is making a habit of strong second-half performances. He had three points at halftime, making one of only four field goal attempts. But he finished with 22 points and 16 rebounds, 11 of them in the second half.

Sneed said Ceballos’ apparent penchant for the second half is partly a result of the extra attention other teams pay him.

“Cedric is a marked man,” Sneed said. “He’s had a lot of national attention, and probably the most important thing the other coach is talking about is how to stop Cedric.”

Ceballos, who at times has endured very poor halves as he tried to find his shooting touch, said he was more patient against Middle Tennessee State.

“Usually I just keep putting it up,” he said. “But it was time to relax and let it come slowly. It’s just a slump I’m trying to get off my back. When the shots aren’t dropping, I just try to rebound and take my shots closer in to the basket. You can’t really have a slump when you’re shooting layups.”

Mark Hill, who scored 19 for Fullerton, has been picking up the slack for Ceballos, averaging 23 points over the past five games and leading the Titans in scoring in the last four before Friday.

“We’re trying basically to complement each other,” Hill said. “If one’s not doing the job, the other one tries to bring him out.”

Wayne Williams added 13 for Fullerton. Agee Ward scored eight, and senior center David Moody, playing in place of Sykes and Aaron Wilhite, who had foul trouble, scored seven points, playing his best game of the season.

Middle Tennessee State never let Fullerton turn the game into a blowout though, trimming the lead to as few as three points and trailing by just seven with 1:25 left.

Fullerton will meet Wyoming (6-4), a 73-66 winner over Northeast Louisiana, in the tournament championship game tonight at 8.

Titan Notes

Coach John Sneed says Ron Caldwell will dress for tonight’s game and will be permitted to play. Caldwell was held out Friday for disciplinary reasons. . . . Cedric Ceballos’ 16 rebounds against Middle Tennessee State was the second-highest total of his college career. He had 20 against San Jose State last season.