Intense Defense Is a Key as Titans Top Nevada, 81-62 : Basketball: Fullerton pressures Wolf Pack into turnovers and poor shooting to rebound from three straight losses.

The word was out on Cal State Fullerton. The Titans had lost three consecutive games, at nationally ranked UCLA, Nevada Las Vegas and New Mexico State, and Fullerton players began hearing the same rumblings they seem to hear every season.

“We heard it through the grapevine that people were saying this was the same ol’ Fullerton,” Titan swingman Bruce Bowen said. “But the old Fullerton would have lost to those (three) teams by 20 and then lost to a team it should have beat.

“Those three games weren’t about us losing to teams we should have outrebounded or outdefended. People don’t realize how high we stepped up in those games. They were learning experiences for us--we learned that we have to sustain that high level every night.”

Thursday night was certainly a step in the right direction. Fullerton stifled Nevada with an intense, man-to-man defense and wore down the Wolf Pack on offense in an 81-62 Big West Conference victory in front of 992 in Titan Gym.

Fullerton (6-4, 1-2 conference) had 11 steals, three each by Aaron Sunderland and Bruce Bowen, and Nevada (5-4, 0-2) had 19 turnovers and shot 41.1%. Titan center Sean Williams blocked five shots.

“It was probably the best defensive effort for a whole game we’ve had all year,” Fullerton Coach Brad Holland said. “It was a real compliment when their coach (Len Stevens) told us they had a hard time getting into their offense all night. Defense is where the game begins for us.”

It wasn’t where it ended Thursday night. The Titans showed patience and good ball movement against the Wolf Pack zone and, after struggling in the early going, they eventually began to find open shots.

Bowen, a senior swingman, did a good job penetrating and shooting from the outside. He finished with 27 points, 16 in the first half, eight rebounds and three assists.

Forward Kim Kemp added 15 points and 10 rebounds, nine offensive, guard Don Leary, despite bruising his wrist in the first half, made four of six three-pointers and scored 14 points, and Williams finished with 10 points.

The Titans used an 11-0 run to build a 37-21 lead late in the first half and the closest the Wolf Pack got in the second was nine, cutting the deficit to 41-32 with seven consecutive points.

But Williams’ inside basket, Kemp’s three-point play and Sunderland’s two free throws pushed the lead to 48-32 with 16 minutes 4 seconds remaining.

Nevada made one final run at Fullerton, scoring six straight points to make it 70-58 with 4:33 left, but the Titans scored the next 11 points to put the game away.

“More than anything, what we got out of those three (losses) was some confidence,” Holland said. “To lose three games and come out feeling good about yourself is a very good sign. And being at home, knowing you’ve got to win, the guys were really focused.”

While the Titans were very competitive against UCLA (90-82) and UNLV (78-65), they seemed to drag a little at New Mexico State (78-67) Monday. But after a week on the road, Fullerton seemed invigorated by the familiar surroundings.

“Being at home was a big difference,” Kemp said. “We put the pressure home defense on them. There’s something different about being at home--you’re into it more. You try to be that way on the road but the home crowd gets you going and makes you try harder.”

Kemp seemed to undergo a transformation at halftime, going from a tentative player in foul trouble to an animal. He had 11 of his points and eight of his rebounds in the second half.

Kemp scored one basket when he hung in the air, leaned to the left and banked in a shot while being fouled. He converted the three-point play for a 46-32 lead. Late in the game he fought two defenders for a loose ball under the Titan basket, dived over the end line and slammed it off Nevada’s Ric Herrin’s leg and out of bounds.

Kemp’s one-handed slam after Williams’ missed hook shot highlighted the 11-0 run that gave Fullerton an 81-58 lead with 1:18 remaining. Williams also had an in-your-face dunk, sending a one-handed slam right over Kirk Davidson in the second half.

“We wanted to come out strong,” Kemp said. “I had three fouls in the first half, but Holland just told me to crash the boards and do anything I could do to hustle.”

That all-out attitude almost cost the Titans in the first half when Leary, Fullerton’s best outside shooter, leaped to block Rod Brown’s three-point attempt, fell over him and slammed his left (non-shooting) wrist on the floor at the 12:16 mark.

Leary remained on the floor for several minutes, squirming probably as much as Holland was on the bench.

“It was a very sinking feeling seeing him writhe on the floor like that,” Holland said.

Leary eventually got up, had the wrist taped and returned with 7:58 left in the first half. He had an excellent game, making five of eight shots and coming up with three steals.