49ers Cover All the Angles : Basketball: From the laser show to Long Beach State’s 71-64 victory over Detroit Mercy, opening night at The Pyramid is a hit.

When they wax nostalgic about the evening at Long Beach State--they will, count on it--anyone who had anything to do with the opening of The Pyramid can smile a smile of success.

They earned it.

The long-awaited opening of the university’s new arena was a smash, as Long Beach defeated Detroit Mercy, 71-64, Wednesday night in front of 5,021, the largest on-campus athletic crowd in Long Beach history.

A pregame laser show got the crowd in the mood--and the basketball game kept it that way. Long Beach built a 12-point first-half lead, watched it shrink to three and then turned on the talent.

Fittingly, senior forward Mike Atkinson led the way in the 49ers’ season opener. Atkinson scored 21 points on seven of 11 shooting.

“We needed some senior leadership tonight,” Atkinson said. “I had the jitters early on, but as soon as that first shot went down, I felt great. After that, I was looking for my shot all night.”

Said Coach Seth Greenberg: “Mike was Mike.”

Detroit Mercy (1-1) was led by senior point guard Michael Jackson. Jackson scored 14 points and thoroughly impressed Greenberg.

“Jackson is a very good player,” Greenberg said. “I thought we guarded the ball pretty well, but he made things happen.”

After trailing by 12 in the first half, Detroit Mercy cut the lead to three, 44-41, when Iyapo Montgomery made two free throws with 16 minutes 34 seconds to play in the game. But the 49ers picked up their defensive intensity, and pushed the lead to 52-45 on a basket by Atkinson with 14 minutes left.

Long Beach regained command with 8:59 to play. An acrobatic shot under the basket by guard Jamie Davis gave the 49ers a 58-50 lead.

Then point guard Rasul Salahuddin, who had 10 points and three assists, brought the crowd to its feet. With 8:27 to play, Salahuddin drove the baseline and threw down a one-handed dunk.

Atkinson was outstanding in the first half, scoring 13 points as the 49ers’ led, 42-32, entering halftime. Atkinson gave Long Beach its first lead in The Pyramid, 20-19, by making two free throws with 9:33 to play in the half.

As usual, Atkinson, who led the nation in field-goal percentage last season, was at his best near the basket. His teammates got him the ball in the post and Atkinson made four of his five shots. He also was five of seven from the free-throw line.

Long Beach led by as many as 12 points. Two free throws by reserve forward Brian Yankelevitz put the 49ers ahead, 36-24, with 3:56 left.

Juaquin Hawkins also played well in the first 20 minutes, leading the 49ers with five rebounds, two blocked shots and scoring seven points. Long Beach shot 50%.

Jackson caused the 49ers many first-half problems. The speedy point guard scored the first points in The Pyramid’s history, making a three-pointer at 19:25.

The Titans’ best outside shooter, Jackson made three three-pointers in the first half and led Detroit Mercy with 11 points. Fortunately for Long Beach, Salahuddinlimited Jackson’s drives to the basket.

Jackson, who usually penetrates whenever he feels like it, was limited in setting up teammates for open shots. With Jackson controlling the tempo, Detroit Mercy took an early 15-10 lead on Jackson’s third three-pointer at 15:40. But the Titans went cold. Over the next 10 minutes, Long Beach outscored Detroit Mercy, 26-9. The Titans shot only 41% for the half.