{"id":154257,"date":"2026-01-29T02:15:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-29T02:15:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/154257\/"},"modified":"2026-01-29T02:15:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-29T02:15:15","slug":"beach-return-home-to-host-uc-riverside-thursday-night","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/154257\/","title":{"rendered":"Beach Return Home To Host UC Riverside Thursday Night"},"content":{"rendered":"

LONG BEACH, Calif. — Long Beach State returns home this week after a challenging road stretch, highlighted by JaQuoia Jones-Brown<\/a> surpassing the 500 career point mark at UC Santa Barbara. With lessons from consecutive games against UCSB and Cal State Fullerton still fresh, the Beach now turns its focus to a UC Riverside team that pulled away late in the first meeting, setting the stage for a home-floor opportunity to reset and compete.<\/p>\n

RIGHT NOW
\n\u2022 UC Riverside presents a familiar test, this time at home. In the previous meeting on Jan. 15 in Riverside, Long Beach State fell 77\u201359 after a decisive third quarter in which UCR outscored the Beach 21\u20137, turning a competitive first half into separation.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Execution remains central against UCR. Long Beach State shot 31.3 percent in the earlier matchup and endured a prolonged third-quarter drought, underscoring the importance of shot quality and patience against Riverside’s defensive pressure.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Rebounding is a swing area. The Beach held a narrow rebounding edge (41-39) in the first meeting but allowed Riverside to convert second chances and points off turnovers, margins that compounded during scoring droughts.<\/p>\n

\u2022 At UC Santa Barbara, Long Beach State stayed competitive early but struggled to sustain momentum as the Gauchos controlled tempo in the half court, using rebounding and ball security to pull away in a 72\u201356 decision.<\/p>\n

\u2022 A milestone anchored the night. JaQuoia Jones-Brown<\/a> surpassed 500 career points at UCSB, finishing with 19 points and 14 rebounds for her fifth double-double of the season while anchoring the Beach on both ends of the floor.<\/p>\n

\u2022 At home against Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State led 24\u201317 after the first quarter but was outscored 56\u201342 over the middle two periods, allowing the Titans to seize control despite the Beach shooting 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from three.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Jones-Brown continues to lead the Big West in minutes at 36.6 per game, fifth nationally, and averaged 16.0 points and 11.5 rebounds across the week, ranking top seven in the league in both categories while guarding multiple positions.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Guard balance will matter. Kennan Ka<\/a> and Khylee Pepe<\/a> combined for 20 points in the earlier matchup at UC Riverside, but sustained perimeter pressure and cleaner decisions will be necessary to disrupt UCR’s rhythm and prevent another momentum-shifting quarter.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Since entering the starting lineup, freshman duo Rosie Akot<\/a> and Morgan Mack<\/a> have provided consistent frontcourt production. Akot averaged 14.0 points and 6.5 rebounds over the last two games, while Mack added 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting against Cal State Fullerton.

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