Records were broken, rivalries were revisited, and one of the most storied groups of seniors in Long Beach State athletics history finally broke through to the Big Dance.
These elements and many more defined the men’s basketball season, which came to an end Thursday afternoon in Portland.
The 49ers picked up one of its marquee wins early in the season, when it defeated the then No. 9-ranked University of Pittsburgh on the road at the Petersen Events Center.
Senior guard Casper Ware scored a then career-high 28 points to lead the ‘Niners to the 86-76 upset victory.
LBSU played one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the country with matchups on the road against San Diego State, Louisville, Kansas and North Carolina – all of which being close losses.
The Beach went on to defeat Xavier and Auburn before falling to Kansas State in the championship game of Diamond Head Classic in Hawaii.
The ‘Niners plowed through Big West Conference play, rattling off 15 straight wins before losing a close road game to Cal State Fullerton in the regular season finale.
In the Big West tournament at the Honda Center, the Beach defeated UC Davis and Irvine leading to a championship battle with UC Santa Barbara for the third year in a row.
Ware came up huge for the Beach yet again, knocking down eight three-pointers en route to scoring 33 points. The ‘Niners went on to clinch the Big West title and a berth in the NCAA tournament with a 77-64 win over the Gauchos.
The season included many individual accolades for the storied group. On Feb. 11 in a win at Davis, senior forward T.J. Robinson became the all-time leading rebounder Big West history. In the same game, Ware dished out two assists, becoming the all-time LBSU leader in that category.
Ware was named a top-11 finalist for the Bob Cousy award, which recognizes college basketball’s best point guard.
He was also named first-team All-Big West, and first team All-District 9. The senior repeated as Big West Player of the Year as well.
When senior forward Eugene Phelps scored his 1,000th career point toward the end of the season, he joined Ware, Robinson and fellow senior Larry Anderson at that milestone.
Anderson was named the Big West Defensive Player of the Year honors after Ware had done so last season. The 6-foot-5 guard was also named first team All-Big West for the third time in his career.
The 49ers will also lose do-it-all forward Edis Dervisevic to graduation. Dervisevic gave the ‘Niners a spark off the bench all season long, averaging 4.2 points and 3.1 rebounds in 17.4 minutes per game.
The energy and hustle plays that Dervisevic provided as the sixth-man this season for the ‘Niners will vastly be missed.
The senior cast will not be easily replaced, but next year’s squad is likely to be led by guards James Ennis and Mike Caffey, the two players with the most game-time experience in two-time reigning Big West Coach of the Year Dan Monson’s system.
Ennis, a transfer from Ventura College, averaged 10 points, 4 rebounds and 2.6 assists in his first season at the Beach. He started all 34 games this season, electrifying the 49er faithful with numerous game-changing dunks, while putting the dagger in the hearts of opposing fans with his smooth, short-corner 3-pointers.
Caffey was the only freshman to see time for LBSU this season, and he did a fantastic job of backing up Ware. Caffey played in all 34 games, averaging 21.8 minutes per contest. The sure-handed guard averaged 5.9 points on 45.2 percent shooting. He also dished out 2.2 assists and pulled down 2.8 rebounds per game.