Long Beach Takes Its Time Winning, 79-78

Cal State Long Beach survived a clock that didn’t want to run out Thursday night and edged Utah State, 79-78, in a Big West Conference game before 6,448 at the Spectrum.

The 49ers won because they got a good game from forward Troy Joseph, who had lost his starting job four games ago. He came off the bench and scored 15 points, including two free throws that seemingly put the 49ers ahead safely with 10 seconds to play.

Utah State inbounded the ball and moved it to the sideline past midcourt, where Kendall Youngblood was fouled by Lucious Harris.

At that point the clock read :08, although Long Beach Coach Joe Harrington couldn’t believe that sequence had taken only two seconds.

“I leaned over and told the (timekeeper) that that wasn’t right,” Harrington said.

Harrington said the timekeeper, Jay Van Noy, responded with an obscene gesture.

After the game, Harrington engaged in a shouting match with fans as he walked up an aisle to do a radio interview.

He wouldn’t forgive the timekeeper, but he didn’t blame the fans.

“I’d harass me too if I was them,” he said with a smile.

Youngblood made one of two free throws to cut the lead to 78-75.

Rudy Harvey then made a free throw to put Long Beach ahead, 79-75, but it wasn’t over yet.

Matt Barnes banked in a 25-foot three-point shot with two seconds left, and a second later the Aggies called time out.

The 49ers’ Mike Masucci lobbed the inbounds pass to slightly beyond midcourt. The ball went off Harvey’s hands and was picked up by Barnes, who attempted a 50-foot left-handed hook shot that hit the backboard slightly to the right of the basket. Then the buzzer went off.

The victory ended a two-game losing streak for the 49ers, 12-5 overall and 5-4 in the Big West. Utah State is 11-8 and 5-3.

Harrington put Joseph into the game in the first half, then quickly took him out when he badly missed a three-point shot. When Joseph got in again, he scored 10 points in the last 6:18 of the first half as the 49ers turned a 33-25 deficit into a 35-33 lead.

They went on to lead, 42-38, at halftime, and never trailed in the second half.

Utah State had a chance to tie the score twice in the last minute. But Youngblood missed a jumper with 22 seconds to play and Rich Jardine missed a five-footer with 12 seconds left. Joseph rebounded that shot and was fouled, setting the stage for the last 10 seconds, which seemed more like 10 minutes.

Harris scored 13 points for Long Beach, Masucci had 12 and Harvey added 10.