The Schedule
Game No. 11
UC San Diego Tritons (3-7, 2-5) vs. Cal State Monterey Bay Otters (4-8, 2-5)
Thursday, January 14, 2010
RIMAC Arena (5,000) • 7:30 pm

Game No. 12
UC San Diego Tritons (3-7, 2-5) vs. San Francisco State Gators (11-4, 4-3)
Saturday, January 16, 2010
RIMAC Arena (5,000) • 7:30 pm

What's On Tap
Following an impressive 81-72 victory over Cal State Stanislaus on Saturday, the UC San Diego men's basketball team will look to build on the performance when Cal State Monterey Bay and San Francisco State come to town this week. The Tritons will welcome the Otters to RIMAC Arena on Thursday night at approximately 7:30 p.m., before hosting the Gators on Saturday at the same time to wrap up their four-game homestand. Following this week's contests, UCSD will travel to Northern California for dates with CCAA foes Humboldt State and Sonoma State Jan. 21-23.

For the Record
The Tritons enter Thursday's game with an overall record of 3-7 and a 2-5 mark in the CCAA following a two-game split with first place Chico State and Cal State Stanislaus last week. The Tritons let a late lead slip away in a 77-68 loss to the Wildcats on Thursday, but bounced back with their best offensive performance of the season two nights later to record a nine-point win over the Warriors. The triumph over Stanislaus was UCSD's first win since Dec. 22 -- a 64-49 win over San Diego Christian College -- and put an end to a three-game skid. The Tritons own a 2-1 record on their home floor this season and have now won 11 of their last 14 contests at RIMAC Arena dating back to last season.  

Offense Clicks In Win Over Warriors
UCSD turned in its best effort of the season last weekend, scoring a season-high 81 points in the win over Cal State Stanislaus. The Tritons shot better than 56% (23-41) from the field for the game, which was also season-high, and connected on 6-of-14 attempts from the three-point line, 43%. UCSD's previous highs for the season were 70 points on 50% shooting in the 20-point win at Cal State East Bay on Dec. 15. The Tritons had a good night at the free throw line, as well, connecting on 29-of-32 attempts, 91%, with Jordan Lawley leading the way at 13-of-14. UCSD is now averaging 71 points in three home games this season, with is 11 more than their overall season average.

Scouting the Otters
Cal State Monterey Bay enters Thursday's clash with an overall record of 4-8 and a 2-5 mark in the CCAA following a pair of losses to Cal State L.A. (60-58) and Cal State Dominguez Hills (79-64) last week. The Otters have lost four of their last five and have yet to win a road game in 2009-10. CSUMB ranks fifth in the CCAA averaging 67.2 points per game, while the defense has allowed 70.8 on the other end, a figure that ranks 11th. Freshman guard Davion Berry leads the team in both scoring and assists at 12.2 and 2.5, respectively, while shooting 48% from the field. Senior guard Keith Wilson is second, averaging 10.3 points to go with 3.8 rebounds per game. UCSD has won five of 11 previous meetings with Cal State Monterey Bay, including both matchups in 2008-09. The Tritons recorded a 71-61 victory over the Otters on Jan. 16 in Seaside, before posting a 72-65 win in the second meeting of the year on Feb. 21 at RIMAC Arena.

Scouting the Gators
San Francisco State heads to Cal State East Bay on Thursday with at 11-4 overall and 4-3 in the CCAA after splitting its games with Cal State Dominguez Hills and Cal State L.A. last week. The Gators have won six of their last eight and own a 4-1 record on the road this season. The SFSU offense currently ranks seventh in the conference, averaging 65.5 points per game, while the defense is second, surrendering just 56.4. Junior guard Marquel Hoskins leads the Gators in scoring, rebounding, and assists, averaging 13.2 points, 4.9 boards, and 4.1 helpers respectively, while shooting 48.5%. Freshman guard Nefi Perdomo is putting up 10.4 points on 44% shooting to go with 3.5 rebounds per night. UCSD holds an 11-8 advantage over San Francisco State in the all-time series after downing the Gators twice a year ago. The Tritons outlasted SFSU 66-59 in San Francisco on Jan. 17 and recorded a 78-71 win in the rematch on Feb. 20 in La Jolla.

Lawley Takes Over CCAA Scoring Lead
Senior guard Jordan Lawley has been on a tear of late and enters Thursday's matchup with Cal State Monterey Bay as the CCAA's top scorer at 17.7 points per game. An all-conference second team selection in 2008-09, Lawley has scored 10 points or more in seven straight games and reached the 20-point plateau in four of the last five. In addition to scoring, he is averaging a career-best 4.9 rebounds and dishing out 2.9 assists per game. Lawley was named the Wilson/CCAA Player of the Week on Monday after averaging 24.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists against Chico State and Cal State Stanislaus last week. He scored a game-high 22 points and tallied six boards and three assists in the loss to the Wildcats, before collecting season-bests of 26 points and 10 rebounds for his first double double of the season in the win over the Warriors.

The Right Wey
Sophomore guard Jay Wey turned in his best performance as a Triton last week, finishing with a career-high 13 points in UCSD's 81-72 victory over Cal State Stanislaus. After failing to score in the loss to Chico State, Wey had a huge hand in the Tritons win two nights later, connecting on 4-of-6 shots from the field, including 3-of-5 from downtown. He also finished with two rebounds and two assists in a season-high 29 minutes off the bench, which wasn't too shabby for a player averaging 2.7 points, 1.3 rebounds, and 0.7 assists on the season. Wey's highest scoring output prior to Saturday's game was five points in the win over San Diego Christian on Dec. 22.

That's More Like It
After a mini three-game slump, Tyler Acevedo had a strong effort in the 77-68 loss to Chico State last Thursday, finishing with 16 points on 5-of-13 shooting. The senior guard sank 2-of-7 shots from behind the three-point arc en route to his highest scoring output since also finishing with 16 in UCSD's win at Cal State East Bay on Dec. 15. Acevedo is currently second on the team in scoring, averaging 9.0 points per game, while leading the squad with 15 triples made. He is also UCSD's top free throw shooter, entering Thursday's game at 84% (21-25) at the charity stripe.

Members of the Board
The Tritons got it done on the boards last week, outrebounding both Chico State (33-31) and Cal State Stanislaus (35-29) despite having a smaller front court in both matchups. In terms of defensive rebounding alone, UCSD averaged 26.5 boards against the Wildcats and Warriors, while surrendering just 18.0 to the opposition. While the Tritons are just 3-7 in 2009-10, the team has had success on the glass this season, outrebounding the opposition in five of its 10 games -- including four of the last six. UCSD currently ranks third in the CCAA averaging 35.1 rebounds per game and second hauling in an average of 26.1 boards on the defensive end.

Tritons Picked To Finish Sixth CCAA Coaches Poll
UCSD was selected to finish sixth in the California Collegiate Athletic Association regular season standings, according to the league's preseason coaches poll that was released last month. The Tritons, who finished tied for fourth in the conference last season at 13-7, received 68 points, two behind fifth place Cal State L.A. Cal Poly Pomona was picked to win the 2009-10 CCAA regular season title, receiving six first place votes and a total of 115 points. Humboldt State collected 113 points and five first place votes to finish second, while Cal State San Bernardino was third after garnering 95 points and the remaining first place vote. Cal State Dominguez Hills was picked fourth after receiving 87 points and Cal State L.A. was fifth with 70. Following UCSD was Sonoma State (49), Chico State (48), San Francisco State (44), Cal State Monterey Bay (38), Cal State Stanislaus (31), and Cal State East Bay (13), finishing seventh through 12th, respectively.