Long Beach Streak Is 15 After 15-Point Win

Long Beach State got off to a slow start Thursday night, but a sizzling second half sent the high-flying 49ers barreling past Pacific, 78-63, for their 15th consecutive victory.

Before 2,726 at the Pyramid, the 49ers--who had a 35-32 halftime lead--opened the second half with eight consecutive points. Antoine Lee’s three-point basket at the 11:55 mark capped Long Beach’s 18-5 run and the visiting Tigers were done.

The victory kept intact a Saturday night battle of the two undefeated teams in Big West Conference play. Long Beach State (17-3, 9-0), the Western Division leader, will play host to Eastern Division leader Utah State (17-5, 9-0). The Aggies defeated Nevada, 69-54.

Should Long Beach win Saturday it would equal the second-longest winning streak in school history. Long Beach State is tied with Central Connecticut State for the nation’s longest current winning streak.

Ramel Lloyd led the 49ers with 23 points on 10 of 13 shooting from the field. It was the third consecutive strong game for Lloyd, who averaged 19.5 points last week in victories over UC Irvine and Cal State Fullerton.

“I just tried to stay in the flow of the offense,” said Lloyd, who had 13 points at the half. “But I was able to get some open looks.”

Peter Heizer led Pacific (9-12, 4-5) with 17 points.