Titans Come Back From Brink, Beat Fresno State, 97-79

Cal State Fullerton, the Team That Nearly Fell Apart two weeks ago, looked and sounded more like Team Harmony during and after Saturday night’s 97-79 Big West Conference victory over Fresno State.

The same players Titan Coach John Sneed called “selfish and stubborn” after a 64-58 loss to UC Santa Barbara Jan. 23 have turned things around, winning four of their past six games.

Fullerton forward Bruce Bowen described the team as “having a lot of selfishness,” and “wanting to play pick-up ball,” after the Santa Barbara game. Saturday night, he spoke of players realizing their roles and playing as a team.

“This is not the same team it was a couple weeks ago,” Sneed said. “This team is playing with more emotion than it has all year. The last two weeks, they’ve been so receptive to their roles, more coachable, more enthusiastic. They’re really taking pride in what they want to accomplish. They’ve really turned it up two notches.”

A crowd of 1,728 in Titan Gym Saturday saw forward Agee Ward make 10 of 15 shots and score 24 points and Bowen score 19 points, including 11 of 11 free throws, to help Fullerton improve to 9-11, 5-6 conference.

Center Sean Williams added 15 points and four blocked shots, guard Joe Small had 13 points and seven assists, and point guard Aaron Sunderland had 13 points and five assists for Fullerton, which made 30 of 56 field-goal attempts for 53.6%, 34 of 39 free throws for 87.2% and outrebounded Fresno State, 40-29.

The Titans used an early second-half surge to take a 67-55 lead with 10 minutes 10 seconds remaining, but two baskets by Brian Baumgartner and DeAndre Austin’s three-pointer, sandwiched around a Williams basket, brought the Bulldogs to within eight, 69-61.

Fresno State (14-9, 5-6) had an excellent chance to cut the deficit to six when Austin stole a pass near midcourt and drove in for a layup.

But he missed the shot, and Titan reserve J.D. Green, who raised the ire of Sneed only moments earlier with an ill-advised three-point attempt that missed, made a jumper to start an 8-0 run that gave Fullerton a 77-61 lead with 5:38 left.

Unlike past games, in which the Titans have blown second-half leads, Fullerton put the Bulldogs away Saturday. Fresno State did not put together more than five consecutive points the entire game.

After the Titans built the 16-point lead, the Bulldogs got no closer than 13 the rest of the way. The Titans also made 11 of 14 foul shots in the final 2:08 to secure a victory that filled Sneed’s head with optimistic thoughts.

“They’ve tasted success and realize the quality of points means more than quantity,” Sneed said, describing the reasons for the Titan transformation. “Winning is enough for everyone, and they realize they can play with anyone in the league when they play like this.

“We’re talking about winning the Big West Tournament. I know that’s a really big statement, but that’s the way I feel right now.”

Bowen credits Sneed for sparking the turnaround.

“He made some serious comments in a team meeting last week,” Bowen said. “It made people think about themselves, to say, ‘Hey, am I doing a job to help the team or doing a job to help myself?’ Everyone listened.”

The Titans have also been boosted by the return of a healthy and confident Williams, who missed two games because of a sprained ankle but has played in the past three.

The 6-foot-10 junior used his not-pretty-but-sometimes-effective jump hook for two baskets and had a key follow slam of a Small miss during the decisive 8-0 run in the second half. He also was a force on defense with his four blocked shots.

“If Williams continues to come on like he did tonight, they will really be a factor in the conference race,” Bulldog Coach Gary Colson said. “The way he got his points tonight really hurt us, as did Agee Ward. I ran everyone we had in there trying to contain them.”

Ward, who scored 31 points in Thursday’s victory over Utah State, played his usual solid game inside, and the Titans’ offensive patience and shot selection were excellent.

“As a team, we just got tired of losing,” Ward said. “There was a certain stretch where everything was down. From that point, you can either go way down or pick it up a notch. We’re really coming along as a team. Guys have more understanding of what they should and shouldn’t be doing.”