With the victory firmly secured, the Long Beach State men’s basketball team trotted out the likes of reserves Jerramy King, Corey Jackson, Mike Vantrimpont, Lin Chang and Sean Starkey to close out Cal State Fullerton last Saturday.
But one player, Brandon Nevens, was not on the Walter Pyramid floor.
Instead, Nevens, a sixth-year senior, surprisingly worked his way into head coach Dan Monson’s thin rotation, and even scored two first-half layups. Not bad for someone who battled back from a kidney failure and swelling in both legs after collapsing at the on-campus track during off-season workouts in September 2008.
“It was just a sigh of relief,” said Nevens, who scored four points in eight minutes, after his first career home game at The Beach. “I’m so happy to be out there, man. I just give all my praise to God for getting me back on the court.
“It felt like a couple years ago when I was out there. It was a long time coming. My emotions were flowing, but I just took a deep breath and I just played my game.”
Hang around the always-upbeat Nevens or talk to him for just a few minutes, and you would never suspect something so life-changing had ever happened to him.
But the true gift came two days before Christmas.
Despite working his way back to get on the court for summer league games, Nevens was never cleared to officially practice and play for LBSU.
Then, on Dec. 23, the 6-3 guard was granted an extension of his five-year NCAA eligibility clock. Nevens practiced with the 49ers on Christmas night, and checked into his first game five days later in a road victory over Cal Poly.
“As a coach, this is one of those situations where you are just excited personally for the player,” Monson said in a statement after he was cleared. “Brandon has been through so much, both physically and emotionally, and has been an integral part of our program for two years without ever participating in a practice or a game.”
What may have been just four points to any other player, was the emotional completion to the comeback trail for Nevens.
Big West Conference notes
Senior forward Courtney Jacob of the LBSU women’s basketball team was named conference player of the week on Monday for a second consecutive week. Jacob averaged 21.5 points per game during the week, including a season-high 23 in last Thursday’s victory over the University of the Pacific.
Cal State Northridge’s Rashaun McLemore claimed the men’s honor after his Matadors went on the road and stunned preseason favorite UC Santa Barbara, 70-69, on Saturday.
Moving on up
Before the men’s basketball team’s 75-60 victory over rival CSUF, the LBSU men’s volleyball team continued its winning ways with a three-set sweep over No. 2 Stanford earlier in the day.
The 49ers (6-3, 5-1 Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) were rewarded Monday with a three-spot jump to No. 2 in the American Volleyball Coaches Association Top 15 national poll. USC retained the top rank.
With the loss, Stanford moved down to No. 4.
Just 3 1/2 weeks ago, the ‘Niners debuted at No. 11 in the preseason poll. That’s quite an impressive jump for a team that started the season 2-3.
Individually, middle blocker Antwain Aguillard was named the AVCA National Player of the Week. The 6-6 senior made a season-high 12 kills with just one error and hit .611 in a victory over Pacific.
For up-to-the-minute Long Beach State sports updates, follow the Daily 49er sports desk @49erSports on Twitter.
Disclaimer: The Daily 49er is not responsible for Postings made on www.daily49er.wpengine.com. Persons commenting are solely responsible for Postings made on this website. Persons commenting agree to the Terms of Use of the website. If Postings do not abide by the Rules of Conduct or Posting Regulations as listed in the Postings Policy, the Daily 49er has all rights to delete Postings as it deems necessary. The Daily 49er strongly advises individuals to not abuse their First Amendment rights, and to avoid language suggestive of hate speech. This site also encourages users to make Postings relevant to the article or other Postings.