SAN LUIS OBISPO — The Cal State Fullerton men’s basketball team keeps ending up in down-to-the-wire thrillers, but they’re starting to go the Titans’ way of late.
Fullerton led by as much as 12 points in the second half then had to hold on to defeat Cal Poly, 54-51, on Thursday night behind 13 points and eight rebounds from DJ Brewton. The Titans improved to 10-10 overall and 3-5 in Big West Conference play with the win, which had much in common with Fullerton’s 73-69 victory at UC Santa Barbara last weekend.
Brewton also contributed two blocked shots and a pair of steals against Cal Poly. Beril Kabamba notched his first career double-double (10 points, 10 rebounds, three assists), while Tory San Antonio and John Mikey Square scored seven points apiece for Fullerton, which squandered a double-digit second-half lead in a home loss to UC Davis a week ago.
The Titans saw their 12-point lead whittled to three this time when the Mustangs got within 52-49 with 1:50 left. But Square scored in the paint on the following possession and shut down Cal Poly’s Kobe Sanders on defense in the final seconds as Fullerton held on to secure the win.
The Mustangs (4-16, 0-8) led 18-7 in the first half but the Titans tied the score with an 11-0 run, then they took a 24-22 halftime lead after Donovan Oday scored just before the first-half buzzer.
The Titans picked up where they left off to begin the second half, with Max Jones scoring a pair of baskets and Brewton completing a three-point play off of his own steal for a 32-24 lead. The Titans extended their advantage to 43-31 after baskets down low from Kabamba and Brewton and a pair of Oday free throws with 9:09 left.
Fullerton still led by 11 with 6:03 left before Cal Poly made its late surge. A Kobe Sanders 3-pointer cut the margin to 50-45 with 4:23 remaining.
Kabamba found Square for a basket in the paint before back-to-back layups from Tuukka Jaakkola got Cal Poly within 52-49 with 1:50 left. Square again scored down low with 1:18 to make it 54-49. Sanders made a pair of free throws with 1:06 left, then Fullerton turned the ball over on a shot-clock violation with 35 seconds left.
Square was switched on to Sanders with less than 15 seconds left but he held his own, forcing a long miss from 3-point range. San Antonio grabbed the rebound with five seconds left and was fouled, but he missed the ensuing free throws. Sanders again had a chance to tie the game at the buzzer but missed another 3-point attempt.
Sanders finished with 14 points and seven assists for Cal Poly, which has lost eight consecutive games. Jaakkola had 11 points and eight rebounds and Aaron Price Jr. had 10 points and six rebounds.
Neither team shot particularly well in a game that featured more combined turnovers (21) than assists (19). Fullerton shot 34.6% from the field (18 for 52), including a 2-for-16 showing from 3-point range. Cal Poly shot 37.7% from the field (20 for 53) and 4 for 21 from behind the arc.
Fullerton was 16 for 22 from the free-throw line, while the Mustangs went just 7 for 15.
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Cal State Fullerton hosts Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday at 6 p.m.
