After picking up its first Division I victory of the season over the weekend, the Long Beach State men’s basketball team will look to carry some momentum into Thursday’s trip to Loyola Marymount.
The Beach (2-3) defeated Fresno State (3-2) on the road Sunday afternoon behind a career-high 23 points from Peter Pappageorge.
The senior guard knocked down four 3-pointers and was a perfect 7-for-7 from the free-throw line en route to raising his career mark for the second straight game after scoring 16 in a loss at Arizona. He has yet to miss from the line in 12 attempts this season and his 44 percent shooting from 3-point range is good for eighth in the Big West Conference.
“We’re all taking on bigger roles,” Pappageorge said. “I have a little more time to just let the game come to me instead of having the feeling to maybe force shots up. It’s nice, if they want me to start I’ll do the best I can. Coming off the bench, I’m going to have the same mindset, the same attitude no matter what.”
LBSU head coach Dan Monson said he is not surprised by the extra contributions Pappageorge has provided as of late.
“We knew what we were getting from last year,” Monson said. “His number-one strength is his consistency. He doesn’t make mistakes, he takes good shots, he’s in the right place defensively – he’s really stabilized us with some consistency.”
Pappageorge joins guards James Ennis and Mike Caffey on the list of 49ers who are averaging double-digit points so far on the season.
Ennis leads the team in scoring (15.6) and is second in rebounding (7) behind only junior forward Dan Jennings (7.4). Caffey is averaging 11.2 points per game and a team-leading 4.4 assists.
When The Beach takes on LMU (3-3) on Thursday, it will attempt to contain the Lions’ two stars in junior guard Anthony Ireland and senior forward Ashley Hamilton.
“That’s kind of a two-headed monster,” he said. “To control Loyola you’re going to have to control those two, especially Ireland. He’s one of the best point guards on the west coast. I think it’ll be a terrific matchup with Mike Caffey.”
Ireland is the Lions’ overall leader and averages of 23.5 points and 4.3 assists a night. Hamilton has tallied 13.5 points and 7.5 boards per contest so far.
Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at Gersten Pavillion.