Big West Conference Basketball Awards Wrapup

The Long Beach State men's and women's basketball teams may need to take out some additional trophy space in the Pyramid to show off all the hardware they took home today as the Big West Conference announced their end of the season awards today.

Women's hoops
A sensational senior and freshman phenom of the LBSU women's basketball both captured accolades for the 49ers.

Courtney Jacob was named Best Hustle Player in the Big West Conference as well as being named second team All-Big West. Jacob averaged a team leading 14.4 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game along with winning back-to-back BW Player of the Week honors.

Brandi Henton was chosen as the Big West Freshman of the year, as she averaged 14.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per contest in Big West play. Henton is just the second player in LBSU history to be named BW Freshman of the year, and was also named to the Big West All-Freshmen team.

Men's hoops
LBSU men's basketball will be carrying the number one seed this week in to the Big West Conference tournament in Anaheim, and all five starters that will take the court for the 49ers were recognized by the Big West, with Casper Ware leading the charge earning Player of the Year honors as well as Defensive Player of the Year, the first time a player has ever won both of those awards.

Ware, a junior point guard, averaged 16.9 ppg, while handing out a season total of 141 assists and 53 steals, he was second on the team in 3-pointers made with 61. While leading the team in scoring, and running the offense, Ware was often also tasked with guarding the opponents best guard, and he and his squad turned in many strong defensive efforts, including holding Big West foes under 60 points seven different times.

Ware joins junior guard Larry Anderson as first-team All-Big West Selections. This marks the second time Anderson was named to the first-team. Anderson averaged 14.3 points and 6.0 rebounds, even more impressive considering he suffered a broken hand that sidelined him for several weeks.

T.J. Robinson was named second team All-Big West after averaging a double-double for the second consecutive year. Robinson finished with averages of 13.6 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.

Rounding out the all-conference selections were Eugene Phelps and Greg Plater, both selected BW Honorable Mention. Plater led the league in three pointers made with 85 3-pointers made on the season. Phelps averaged 10.2 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, and finished fifth in blocked shots.

And last, but certainly not least, head coach Dan Monson takes home his first Big West Coach of the Year Honor for leading the 49ers to a 20-10 record, including 14-2 in Big West Play.

Live game blog: Women's basketball vs. USD 12/6/2010

Updates from court side at the Pyramid

16:09 left in first half
Trapping defense giving USD some trouble bringing the ball up. Brandi Henton hit a nice three from the corner on an offensive rebound. LBSU needs to continue to play defense for the entire shot clock with USD getting some late baskets. Turnovers by the Beach lead to two quick layups. 8-6 USD.

12:24 left in first half.
Courtney Jacob goes coast to coast with a nice layup. LBSU boxing out on the defensive glass well. Post defense and turnovers are costing the Beach giving USD extra looks and easy layups. Coach Wynn sends a line change in. 16-11 USD.

7:30 left in first half
Turnovers continue to cost the Beach possessions. An offensive rebound by Tipesa Moorer and feed to Courtney Jacob for an easy lay up. Jacobs continues to be aggressive and works her way to the line, sinking both her shots. She has 7 early points to lead the Beach. Lyndsay Heard hits a 3 from the top of the key to cut the deficit to 4. 24-20 USD

3:49 left in first half
Amanda Sims working hard on the offensive and defensive glass. LBSU in the bonus with under six to play. The Beach is capitalizing on their chances at the line making 7-9. Ella Clark prevents an easy USD layup with a clean block. Game was tied, now LB down by 2. 26-24 USD.

1:00 left in first half
Jacob filling up the state sheet with a nice assist to Moorer and a three from the top of the key to give the Niners a three point lead. LBSU needs to tighten their interior D. An easy press break by Long Beach gives Clark an uncontested layin. With 1 minute remaining USD takes a timeout. LB now leads 33-30.

End of first half
With 5.6 seconds remaining, USD forward Emily Hatch hits a halfcourt shot as the buzzer rings out, giving USD a 34-33 lead at the half.

------------Second Half------------

15:26 left in second half
Niners are contesting shots, but still falling for USD thus far early in the half. Turnovers for both sides. Ella Clark swats away another shot, but too many easy looks given up by The Beach. Niners outscored 12-2 in the half so far. 46-35 USD.

11:44 left in second half
Conners hits an And-1 for USD as Long Beach struggles to find the bottom of the net in the second half. Janae Coffee banks one home to give the Niners their first bucket of the half. When Long Beach can get USD in their half court sets, the Niners have played solid D, but turnovers and blown assignments have led to easy baskets. 53-38 USD in the lead.

7:55 left in second half
More solid defense from the 49ers, but still aren't converting on the offensive end. Nice feed from Moorer to Jacob on a back cut. USD in the bonus. 58-45 USD leads.

3:14 left in second half
USD doing well to use as much clock as they can, every shot seemingly coming with less than 10 seconds left on the shot clock. Long Beach press continues to give USD fits, an easy run out coming for Henton after a steal. Jacob with another nice drive and the foul but can't complete the three point play. Long Beach playing with high energy but need a run with clock winding down. Coach Wynn calls time. 66-52 USD leads.

End of second half
Long Beach State fighting til the end, but clock is not on their side. Long Beach went cold from the field for most of the second half and couldn't recover falling to USD 68-53.

Hope you guys enjoyed this live blog!

'Tis The Season: Holiday Toy Drive

With the holiday season right around the corner, Long Beach State athletics has partnered with Miller's Children Hospital of Long Beach for a toy drive. Starting at tonight's Women's basketball game against the University of San Diego, any fan who brings a new, unopened toy or five canned food items will receive a game ticket to a home game in the month of January.

If you can't make it out to tonight's game, the toy drive will continue at the December 19 Women's basketball game vs. Florida A&M and December 21 at the Women's basketball game against North Carolina State.

Toys can be dropped off at the marketing booth on the Pyramid concourse during the game.

Have a Happy Holiday season and don't forget to bring a toy as you make your way to the Pyramid tonight.

Weekend Recap: (11/11-11/14)

With so many Long Beach State teams in action over the weekend, it may have been hard to keep up with all the scores, game stories, media links, photo galleries and highlight videos, but that's what we are here for!

Nov. 11
The women's volleyball team got the weekend started early for Long Beach State with a home sweep of Cal State Northridge. Caitlin Ledoux led the 49ers with 16 kills while hitting .371. A combination of a strong offense, and a defense that held the Matadors to a .039 hitting percentage allowed the 49ers to easily cruise to their fourth straight victory.

Photo courtesy of Daily 49er

Nov. 12
After beating UCI to clinch the Big West tourney title, the Long Beach State women's soccer team headed to Palo Alto, Calif. to take on Santa Clara in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Though LBSU out shot the Broncos 22-5 in the match and dominated time of possession, Santa Clara forward Bridgett Miller was able to slip a shot past Emily Kingsborough in the 84th minute to give Santa Clara the 1-0 victory and end the 49ers' season.

In depth women's soccer recap by Daily 49er
Photo gallery from Palo Alto by Daily 49er

Back in action on Friday night was the women's volleyball team, who made quick work of UC Riverside, winning in straight sets for the second consecutive night ending their regular season home schedule on a high note. The 49ers were led by Janisa Johnson, who tallied 19 digs.

Nov. 13
Both the men's and women's hoops teams took the court for the first time on Saturday, though on opposite ends of the West Coast.

The women's team faced off with Pac-10 foe Oregon State in Corvalis, Ore. and suffered a 71-39 setback. Ashley Bookman scored a career high 12 points to lead The Beach.

Photo courtesy of Press Telegram

Back at the Pyramid, men's hoops welcomed the No. 25 San Diego State Aztecs, the first ranked team to venture in to Long Beach since 2004. A record 5,143 people were in attendance at the game, the largest crowd ever to watch a sporting event at the Pyramid.

The game was a back and forth affair throughout the first half, featuring runs by both teams including a 7-0 spurt by the 49ers capped off by a transition dunk by T.J. Robinson, assisted by Casper Ware to end the half tied at 42.

But as the game wore on, fatigue began to set in for the 49ers, and the Aztecs took control of the game with a 15-3 run to close out the game over the last 5:48.

T.J. Robinson led the 49ers with 19 points and 9 rebounds, while Casper Ware shot 50 percent from the field chipping in 15 points and dishing out 4 assists. Greg Plater notched 10 points.

Check out the following media links for much more from the game:
Press Telegram game recap by Frank Burlison
Press Telegram photo gallery
Daily 49er recap by Steve Lyons

Beach women's basketball supports fight against breast cancer

The Long Beach State Women's basketball team raised over $1,000 in donations, doubling their target goal, as participants in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk that took place on Sunday, Oct. 10.

The 5K walk was held in Costa Mesa, Calif. and was held to celebrate sponsorship and as an occasion to express hope and increase awareness about breast cancer.




For a full gallery of photos from the event head over to LongBeachState.com

Women's Basketball Team Breast Cancer Awareness Walk on Saturday

As you may know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast cancer is unfortunately the most common cancer in the United States and is the second leading cause of cancer death for women. Let's join the fight and help raise awarness for our friends, sisters, mothers, and daughters.

The Women's Basketball Team is raising money towards Breast Cancer Awareness. They will be participating in the 2010 Making Strides Against Breast Cancer 5K Walk this Saturday, October 9 in Costa Mesa.

Please donate to their cause and help fight breast cancer by visiting their site. You can also find out more information about the 5K walk by clicking here.

Also, don't forget the Women's Volleyball Spike Out Breast Cancer Match against UC Davis this Friday! Wear a pink t-shirt and get a ticket for only $3! You can click here for more information.

Behind the scenes: Women's Basketball photo shoot

In preparation for the upcoming 2010-11 basketball season, Long Beach State's Women's team pulled on their brand new uniforms, laced up their fresh kicks and said 'Cheese.' Repeatedly. For about two hours.

The Black and Gold insider was there to capture some candid photos from behind the scenes.



Courtney Jacob poses with a green screen behind her



A side view of some video being shot last Monday night in the Pyramid



Ashley Bookman filming a promotional video



Courtney Jacob (left) helps Lyndsay Heard (No. 23) get ready for a picture