LONG BEACH, Calif. – True freshman Gavin Sykes once again proved that he’s one of the top young scorers in the nation, leading Long Beach State with a career-high 34 points as the Beach went on the road to CSUN and came away with an 87-80 win over the Matadors.
Sykes had 24 of his 34 points in the second half and did a lot of damage from the free throw line, going 15-for-16 from the stripe to lead Long Beach State (8-11, 4-3 Big West) to their first road win while handing CSUN (11-9, 4-4 Big West) their first home loss of the season.
The Beach fought from behind early, as quick foul trouble for the Long Beach State frontcourt shaped the first half, with both Petar Majstorovic and Leopold Levillain being awarded two fouls in the opening minutes.
Down 27-22 with just under eight minutes left in the half, Chris Acker elected to reinsert the French big men, and the decision paid off quickly, as Long Beach State went on a 13-2 run to take a 35-30 lead. The Beach went cold at that point, and the Matadors closed the half on an 8-0 run.
Larry Hughes II was fouled on the first possession of the second half and hit three free throws to push the CSUN lead to 41-35, but that would be their largest lead of the night as Long Beach State roared back.
Rob Diaz III hit two quick threes to close the gap, and then Majstorovic cashed in a corner three to tie the game at 46. Diaz and Sykes then combined for two more back-to-back threes to give the Beach a four-point lead at 54-50.
The breakneck pace continued, with CSUN retaking the lead at 67-65 with just over eight minutes to play, but a heads-up play from Dallas Washington on a putback on a second free throw from Bender put the Beach in front once again.
Sykes then made sure that lead lasted. Feeding the hot hand down the stretch, Sykes hit two threes to push the lead to six at 77-71. A three-point play in the final minute from the freshman made the score 82-76, and the Beach closed out the game from there at the line. Sykes scored 16 of the final 19 points for LBSU in the game to close out the win.
Diaz III finished with 18 points and a team-high 6 rebounds, while Majstorovic added 14 for Long Beach State. Hughes II led the way for CSUN with 21 points.
Long Beach State will carry a three-game winning streak into two more Big West games next week, taking on Cal State Fullerton on the road Thursday night before hosting UC Santa Barbara Saturday in the team’s return to the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid.
