Nevada Dumps Fullerton Again

All the things that Cal State Fullerton doesn’t do well were on display Saturday night: rebounding . . . defense . . . playing Nevada.

By the time the Wolf Pack was done putting the trimmings on a 77-60 Big West Conference victory, the Titans were ready to hit the road back to Southern California. They already had hit the skids, going the final 7 minutes 34 seconds without a field goal.

And offense is a Titan strong point.

But the Wolf Pack (4-9, 2-0) pleased the 5,694 at the Lawlor Center by closing out their first two-game winning streak this season with a 21-6 run. It turned a 56-52 lead into a rout and left Nevada tied for first.

Not bad for a team that went 2-9 during a nonconference schedule that included two losses to Sacramento State. But this is the Big West, where a year ago UC Santa Barbara was able to go from a 2-8 nonconference record to the Western Division title.

“Everyone was excited,” said forward Richard Stirgus, who had 13 points and 18 rebounds. “Our preseason schedule was kind of hard. We got a feel for everybody. We wanted to get over the hump.”

They cleared it with room to spare.

“It’s a matter of who you play and when you play them,” Coach Trent Johnson said.

Actually, with the Titans, the “when” part doesn’t matter. This was their 10th consecutive loss to the Wolf Pack, dating back to 1994.

“They’ve just been better than us,” Fullerton Coach Bob Hawking said.

That was underscored Saturday.

Nevada had a 54-30 edge in rebounding, which included 26 offensive rebounds. Stirgus had eight offensive rebounds, leading to nine points.

Nevada shot only 36%, but had 12 more shots.

“It has been that way all season,” Hawking said. “But to be outrebounded, 54-30, is an insurmountable number when you’re trying to win a game. They shot 36%, but a large part of that 36% was put-backs. We have to find a way to get the job done. Right now, we don’t have the answers.”

There were other questions as well.

The Titans (5-8, 0-2) were giving up an average of 75 points per game and were above average Saturday.

The Wolf Pack may have shot poorly as a team, but like UC Irvine on Thursday, the Titans were unable to cope with freshman guard Terrance Green.

Green, who scored 30 points in a 67-63 victory over the Anteaters, missed his first three shots Saturday, but made seven of his next eight. He scored 23 points.

With the Titans leading, 37-36, early in the second half, Green made three consecutive three-pointers for a 45-38 lead and the Wolf Pack never trailed again.

Green, a nephew of the Lakers’ A.C. Green, has made nine of 13 three-pointers in the last two games. He has scored 73 points in the three games since he was benched against St. Mary’s.

Ike Harmon tried to counter, and did finish with 21 points. But his five-footer with 7:34 left that cut Nevada’s lead to 61-56 was Fullerton’s last basket. The Titans went scoreless the last 4:34.