Harmon Flies In for the Winning Basket

It was left to Ike Harmon, a weary traveler, to halt Cal State Fullerton’s road woes, and give his downcast day a positive ending.

Harmon began Saturday at his uncle’s funeral in Los Angeles and ended it by tipping in a shot with two seconds left to give the Titans a 72-70 victory over North Texas in a Big West Conference game in front of 1,873 in the Super Pit.

It was part a 23-point performance that ended Fullerton’s road losing streak at 12. The Titans (6-6, 1-1) hadn’t won on the road since Jan. 25, 1997, when they beat UC Irvine. But it didn’t come easy.

The Eagles’ Gabe Moeller, who scored a career-high 15 points, made a three-pointer that tied the score, 70-70, with 12 seconds left.

After a timeout, Chris Dade dribbled through the press and passed to Mark Richardson, who missed two shots underneath. Harmon leaped above two North Texas players and batted the ball, which rolled on the lip of the rim before going in.

No one was happier afterward than Harmon, who finally got to rest after intercepting a pass with one second left and ending any Eagle hopes of a miracle finish.

“It has been a long day,” said Harmon, a 6-foot-7 sophomore. “I got to the hotel 10 minutes before the team left and I haven’t had a chance to relax all day.

“I had to pay my last respects to my uncle, but I had loyalty to the team too.”

Jerome Sampson, Harmon’s uncle, died last weekend. Harmon left the team in El Paso Friday, a day after the Titans lost in double overtime to New Mexico State. He made four of 17 shots in that game before fouling out.

Harmon missed team workouts Friday and Saturday, but hardly seemed to need the practice. He made nine of 15 shots, and had seven rebounds.

It mirrored a performance Harmon had earlier this season, when he scored 15 points against Loyola Marymount after missing a week of practice while recovering from a concussion.

“All I know is from now on, when we have two road games, Ike is going to fly home and fly back the day of the game,” Coach Bob Hawking said, sitting next to a smiling Harmon.

“We were just thankful that Ike could meet his family commitments and be here in time tonight. He was a huge factor.”

Harmon looked tired only once, at the end of the first half, but had been very busy. He entered four minutes into the game and scored 11 of Fullerton’s next 14 points. He had 17 points by halftime, the last four coming on two steals and two dunks--first a reverse, then a 360.

“Those are just instinct,” Harmon said. “I decided to get a little fancy. I could see coach biting his lip and I wanted to scare him a little bit.”

Hawking had enough to worry about. Fullerton started strong, leading 27-17, but had trouble with North Texas’ half-court and full-court pressure. After taking the 10-point lead, the Titans turned the ball over on six of their next seven possessions, leading to 15 consecutive points by the Eagles (2-10, 1-1).

Fullerton went up by 10, 57-47, in the second half, but then had more problems with the North Texas press. The Titans finished with a season-high 25 turnovers.

“We were very tentative against their press,’ Hawking said. “North Texas puts you into that position. You don’t face many teams that play that way.”

Fullerton survived with efforts from unusual sources. Dade, who averages 18 points, made back-to-back three-pointers to start the game and didn’t score again. Others picked up the slack.

Richardson scored a season-high 13, the first time he has been in double figures since the second game of the season. Kenroy Jarrett scored six points, all during a 9-0 run that gave Fullerton a 57-47 lead.