Game No. 25
UC San Diego Tritons (8-15, 7-13) vs. Humboldt State Lumberjacks (19-6, 16-4)
Friday, February 26, 2010**
RIMAC Arena (5,000) • 7:30 pm
**Senior Day

First Things First
Following a hard-fought road victory over Cal State Monterey Bay, the UC San Diego men's basketball team returns to RIMAC Arena to wrap up the 2009-10 regular season this week. The Tritons will host Sonoma State on Wednesday, before welcoming Sonoma State to town on Friday. As always, both contests will tipoff at approximately 7:30 p.m. or 20 minutes after the conclusion of the women's games. Triton seniors Jordan Lawley and Tyler Acevedo will be honored with a special Senior Day ceremony prior to Friday's contest.

For the Record
UCSD enters play this week with an overall record of 8-15 and a 7-13 mark in California Collegiate Athletic Association play after going 2-1 in three games last week. The Tritons knocked off last place Cal State East Bay 67-48 on Tuesday, before traveling to Northern California, where they split two games with San Francisco State and Cal State Monterey Bay. Head coach Chris Carlson's squad lost a 61-50 decision to the Gators on Friday, but bounced back with a gritty 78-74 triumph over the Otters the following night. After recording just four wins in their first 17 games in 2009-10, the Tritons have now won four of their last sixth to climb to a season-high ninth place in the league standings.

Still Alive
The Tritons still have an outside shot at a CCAA Tournament berth, but they are going to need some help to get it. For UCSD's season to continue, they will need to defeat both Sonoma State and Humboldt State this week -- two teams above them in the standings -- and hope that Cal State L.A. loses its final two games, as well. If the Tritons can get by the Seawolves and Lumberjacks and the Golden Eagles fall to Cal State Stanislaus and Chico State, then both teams would have a conference record of 9-13. UCSD would then earn the berth by virtue of a better record against other teams that have qualified for the tournament.

Sonoma State At A Glance
Sonoma State enters Wednesday's matchup with an overall record of 10-15 and a 9-11 mark in the CCAA following a pair of victories on the road last week. The Seawolves won an 85-78 decision with Chico State on Friday and then took care of host Cal State Stanislaus, 64-56, on Saturday. Sonoma has won six of its last nine games overall and currently sits in the eighth spot in the conference standings. The Seawolves have the CCAA's third-ranked offense, averaging 68.3 points per game, while their defense ranks last, surrendering 71.6 on the other end. Sophomore guard Steven Pratt is the team's leading scorer at just under 14 points per game, while shooting 51% from the field and dishing out 3.5 assists per game. Freshman Will Olsem is averaging 10 points and leads the squad with 59 threes on 44% shooting from behind the arc. Sonoma holds a 15-9 advantage in the all-time series with UCSD after taking the first meeting of the year on Jan. 23 in Rohnert Park. Jordan Lawley led all scorers with 28 points, but it wasn't enough as the Seawolves shot 50% from the field in the 78-66 victory.

Humboldt State At A Glance
Humboldt State begins the week with an overall record of 19-6 and a 16-4 mark in the CCAA after defeating Cal State Stanislaus (51-49) and Chico State (60-53) last week. Winners of three straight and 11 of its last 12, HSU is currently tied with Cal Poly Pomona at the top of the conference standings with two games remaining. The Lumberjack offense ranks second in the CCAA, putting up 72.4 points per game, while the defense has allowed 62.1, a figure that ranks fourth. Junior forward Brian Morris leads the team in both scoring and rebounding, averaging 14.9 points and 6.3 boards per game, while shooting better than 63% from the field. Senior guard Zac Tiedeman is averaging 12.1 points and is a serious three-point threat, shooting over 47% from behind the arc. Humboldt has won eight of 11 previous meetings between the two schools, including a 74-60 decision on Jan. 21. The Lumberjacks outscored the Tritons 39-27 in the second half to record the victory, despite a game-high 30 points from Lawley. Humboldt State will play at Cal State East Bay on Wednesday, before coming to La Jolla on Friday.

Law Man
Senior guard Jordan Lawley is having a career year for the Tritons and enters the final week of the regular season leading the CCAA in scoring at 20.7 points per game. He has scored in double figures 19 times in the last 20 games and has reached the 20-point mark 13 times during that span. The Lodi native is also averaging a career-best 5.6 rebounds and dishing out a team-high 2.6 assists, while shooting 44% from the field. Lawley averaged 18.7 points and 5.0 rebounds last week, leading the Tritons to a 2-1 mark during a busy three-game week. After finishing with just nine points in UCSD's 67-48 win over Cal State East Bay -- failing to score 10 for just the third time this season -- he bounced back with a 19-point effort on 7-of-19 shooting against San Francisco State. He also finished with three boards and three assists, while playing a full 40 minutes in the loss to the Gators. Lawley had another big game against Cal State Monterey Bay the following night, scoring 28 points to guide the Tritons to a 78-74 win. He connected on 10-of-24 attempts from the floor and snared five rebounds in 36 minutes.

Front and Center
Sophomore center Christian Hatch has come on strong over the last few weeks, averaging 12.7 points and 6.5 rebounds in the last six games. The Henderson, Nev. native was named UCSD's Male Athlete of the Week on Monday after averaging 13.7 points and 7.0 rebounds in the Tritons' three games last week. Hatch tallied his fourth double-double of the season in the win over Cal State East Bay, finishing with 12 points and 10 boards, to help the Tritons down the reeling Pioneers. He finished with 10 points and six rebounds in the loss to San Francisco State on Friday and then turned in a 19-point, five-rebound effort against Cal State Monterey Bay the next night. Hatch has been in the starting lineup for all 23 games this season and enters Wednesday's game averaging 8.4 points and 5.3 boards. He is shooting just under 44% for the season.

Ace - evedo!
Tyler Acevedo is having a productive senior season for the Tritons and has proven to be one of the most reliable shooters on the squad. The senior guard has played in all 23 of UCSD's contests in 2009-10 -- starting the last 19 -- and ranks second on the team, averaging 8.6 points per game. He has been one of the Tritons' top three-point threats all season and currently leads the squad with 42 triples. The Agoura Hills, Calif. native averaged 11.3 points on 38% shooting in three games last week. He had a big performance in the 19-point win over Cal State East Bay, finishing with 19 points and seven rebounds in 27 minutes. Acevedo hit eight threes last week, taking 25 attempts.

UCSD Survives Late CSUMB Rally For 78-74 Win
UCSD recorded its third road win of the season on Saturday, and second in as many weeks, after surviving a late rally from host Cal State Monterey Bay. The Tritons held a 37-33 advantage at halftime and took their biggest lead of the game at 60-51 a little more than 10 minutes into the second period, but the Otters responded with an 11-4 run to close within 66-64 with 5:11 left to play. Tyler Acevedo answered with a big three and Jordan Lawley sank two free throws to make it 71-64 with 2:39 on the clock. Monterey Bay would close to within two once more, but it was too little, too late, as Christian Hatch sank two at the line with five seconds left to seal the victory. UCSD shot 40% (28-70) for the game and held a 37-33 advantage on the glass.