49ers Score an Early Knockout

For two days, the Long Beach State men’s basketball team made the most of hotel life in the cold and snow of central Indiana.

The 49ers then made the most of the first seven minutes of their opening-round game against Mercer Friday in Purdue’s Boilermaker Invitational.

Long Beach State (3-1) raced to an 18-0 lead against Mercer and romped to a 76-45 victory. The 49ers will play three-time reigning Big Ten Conference champion Purdue in tonight’s championship game.

Purdue scored a 69-55 victory against Cornell in Friday night’s opener. Junior guard James Cotton scored nine of his game-high 28 points during the 49ers’ 18-0 start. Cotton, who entered with a 26-point average, made 11 of 15 field-goal attempts and each of his four free throws.

“This [fast start] is something you dream about--making all of your shots, boxing out, getting rebounds, running the floor and playing good defense,” Cotton said.

“We were just so anxious to play. We got here two days ago, so everyone has been at the hotel, anxiously waiting to play.”

Cotton said playing in Purdue’s 14,123-seat Mackey Arena inspired him.

“I love playing in the big time,” Cotton said. “My freshman year, we went to Iowa and had a tremendous experience. And Purdue fans are great. I was watching them before the game, and they really get up and cheer.

“I think it helped our team coming into an environment like this.”

That was obvious.

Long Beach State’s aggressive defense forced 23 Mercer turnovers, which produced 27 points for the 49ers.

Center Brian Yankelevitz, who added eight points, six rebounds and five assists, said he was equally ready to play Friday night.

“I was sick of playing [video games] the last two days,” the 49er post player said. “We just wanted to get out on the court and play.

“Indiana is a great basketball state, so we wanted to make a statement that, ‘Hey, we can play basketball out in California too.’ ”

Long Beach State Coach Wayne Morgan credited his team’s defensive pressure for producing the 18-0 lead after only 6:14 of action.

“I thought that we were sharp,” Morgan said. “That first five or six minutes might have been the sharpest we’ve been in every aspect of what we’re trying to do.”

Long Beach State led, 42-21, at halftime, and Mercer got no closer than 17 during the final 20 minutes.

Mercer Coach Bill Hodges, whose 1979 Larry Bird-led Indiana State team finished second to Magic Johnson and Michigan State in the NCAA tournament, was impressed by the 49ers.

“I think Long Beach State will be a handful for Purdue,” Hodges said.

Purdue (3-2) has won five of its six Boilermaker Invitationals, including the past four in a row.