Titans Win Battle but Lose the Game

New Mexico State won the Big West Conference basketball game against Cal State Fullerton, 66-58, Wednesday night, but Coach Neil McCarthy had far more praise for the Titans than he did for his own team.

“That’s a good little team,” McCarthy said. “They’re well-coached and they play hard. If this game was decided on effort, I’d give them the win. They made some mistakes, but they weren’t mental mistakes. They just got outmatched physically a few times.”

McCarthy had few kind words for his own team’s play, even though the Aggies (12-3) moved up to 3-1 in their bid for their third consecutive Big West championship. The Aggies are unbeaten in eight games in Pan American Center.

It was the Titans’ first conference loss after two road victories.

“We stunk against UC Irvine, and we stunk tonight,” McCarthy said. “We had at least three players who were somewhere off in outer space . . . If we played these last two games on the road, they’d both have beat us. We’re not emotionally ready for games.”

Fullerton Coach Bob Hawking wasn’t happy with his team’s play, but had no complaints about the effort.

Hawking was more concerned about his team’s inability to work the ball inside against the Aggies’ matchup zone defense and make three-point shots. The Titans (4-7) were only three for 14 (21%) from three-point range, although they wound up shooting a respectable 46.9% from the field.

The Titans got 10 first-half points from center Winston Peterson, but he was held to only one free throw the rest of the way with the Aggies clamping down inside. Forward David Frigout and guard Chris St. Clair led the Titans with 12 points. Guard Chuck Overton also had 11. Two other guards faltered. Chris Dade, slowed by the flu, was only one for eight from the field and guard James French was held to two free throws.

The Titans shot 52% from the floor in the first half, but still trailed at halftime, 32-30. The Titans went ahead, 17-11, but the Aggies went to a full-court press that forced Fullerton into a series of turnovers. The Titans had 27 in the game.

During one stretch, Fullerton scored only three points in six minutes. The Aggies were in control throughout the second half, posting their biggest lead at 11 points with 8:35 to play.

Fullerton cut the deficit to five points, 63-58, with 52 seconds left, but the Aggies held on. Guard Rodney Walker led New Mexico State with 17 points. The Aggies were outrebounded, 38-34, adding to McCarthy’s chagrin.