Long Beach Nearly Blows Big Lead

A lackluster second-half against a small but inspired Bethune-Cookman team almost spoiled the Long Beach State debut of UCLA transfer Ike Nwankwo. But the 49ers held on to win, 84-79, Monday night in front of a season-high crowd of 3,783 at the Pyramid. At one point in the second half, the 49ers led by 24 points.

James Cotton led the 49ers (4-4) with 24 points and 10 rebounds, but Nwankwo was a definite factor. He scored 14 points and had seven rebounds in 27 minutes of play as a reserve.

Bethune-Cookman Coach Maurice Sheals said Nwankwo, a 6-foot-11 senior center who hadn’t played in a year, was more than a factor.

“He’s the difference in the game,” Sheals said. “He’s a physical presence. He’s big, strong and athletic. We all know about Cotton, but Cotton has some help now.”

But Nwankwo didn’t think he was that much of help.

“I think I played good but I wish I could have done more to help the team,” said Nwankwo, who gained his eligibility Friday. “I missed a few rebounds I should have had.”

Nwankwo scored eight points in the first half as Long Beach State ran off to a 51-31 halftime lead thanks to a 15-0 run midway through the first half.

The 49ers maintained their lead and even widened it to 60-36 with 16:27 left. But Bethune-Cookman, which made just nine of 27 shots in the first half, caught fire and hit three three-pointers in an 18-2 spurt that cut the lead to 62-54 with 11:45 left.

“They got confident down the stretch, especially [Freddie Cole] with his three-pointers,” Cotton said. “Everyone started feeling it.”

Bethune-Cookman (1-6), which had played North Carolina, Kansas State and Creighton, cut the lead to three points on three occasions by taking advantage of Long Beach State’s sloppy ball-handling and poor shot selection.

Cole finished with four three-pointers and a team-high 17 points.

Cole hit his fourth three-pointer with 10 seconds to make it 82-79 but Cotton made two free throws to clinch the victory.

Long Beach Coach Wayne Morgan defended his team’s second-half collapse.

“You have to remember, I have guys that as a group have not been to war together and they have five seniors out there,” he said. “That’s significant. I feel proud our guys responded before it was too late.”

Cotton said he’s proud to finally be playing with Nwankwo.

“I played against him as a junior in high school and he was dominant,” Cotton said. “He showed a little of that tonight.”

By his own admission, Nwankwo also showed some rust.

“The guys were telling me game-shape and practice-shape is a big difference,” Nwankwo said. “I could see that. I was out there huffing and puffing. I finally got my second wind late in the second half.”

Long Beach center Brian Yankelevitz also benefited from Nwankwo’s presence. He scored eight points, grabbed seven rebounds and had three assists as he was given more freedom to roam on the baseline with Nwankwo taking up space in the lane.

“I haven’t played with a big guy like Ike since Joe McNaull was here,” Yankelevitz said. “It’s nice to have another big body in there.”

It’s also nice to win. Long Beach State, which made 27 of 34 free throws, had lost three games in a row after starting 3-1.

“I’m just so glad to get the win for him,” Cotton said of his new teammate.