CSUB rolls to 106-58 win over Whittier

Dec. 6—Despite suffering two straight losses, Rod Barnes felt his team's play was trending in the right direction.

So with NCAA Division III Whittier College in town, the Cal State Bakersfield men's basketball coach emphasized the importance of continuing to build momentum as the Roadrunners.

On Tuesday night, the Roadrunners did just that.

Senior point guard Kaleb Higgins led six 'Runners in double-figures scoring with a team-high 22 points and CSUB forced 30 turnovers in a 106-58 victory over the Poets at the Icardo Center.

"I told our guys that I thought we were moving in the right direction and we didn't want to take any steps back (Tuesday) night," Barnes said. "So I was really intense and really locked into the game because I don't want to lose the momentum that we have, as far as playing better. And I thought our guys went out ... different guys showed up tonight, and I was happy and pleased about that, but it wasn't a surprise to me. I've been seeing it in practice. I thought we made another step in the right direction."

Cal State Bakersfield (4-4) scored early and often, making the most of its advantage in height and athleticism at virtually every position to overwhelm Whittier (1-6), which has struggled to find victories early this season.

Listed as an exhibition on the Poets' schedule, the Roadrunners turned it into a showcase, dominating virtually every category on the stat sheet — and a few not listed, such as high-light reel slam dunks. The 'Runners led that 9-1 at last count.

It was a much more positive result than last week's 81-65 loss at No. 11 Gonzaga, a game where CSUB hung tough, especially in the second half after trailing by 15 at the intermission.

On Tuesday, Cal State Bakersfield began to pull away midway through the first half, forcing turnovers and controlling the boards with a 46-28 advantage.

During one stretch of what turned into a 19-2 run, Higgins hit a corner 3 and then finished off a fast break with a pass off the backboard to teammate Fidelis Okereke, who rattled the rim with a powerful two-handed dunk in what would grow to a 40-16 lead with 6:20 left in the first half.

"We were just looking to execute our plays and just working on the little things," Higgins said. "And getting better."

Despite the lead, Barnes continued to work the sidelines, shuffling through his line-up and encouraging his group to keep their intensity.

"I was working just as hard as I did in the Gonzaga game, or I felt like when we play USC" Barnes said. "And I think if I continue to lead in that way, our guys will start to play and kind of follow my lead. That's why I was intense, because I wanted those guys to know I didn't look at Whittier and say, "well, we're supposed to win this game' and 'hey, I'm just going to show up and I'm not going to coach,' because then they might do that. And I thought we had some guys that really responded to my challenge tonight."

The Roadrunners had solid performances from most everyone that took the court, with 10 'Runners scoring at least one basket.

In addition to Higgins' scoring output, which came on 8 of 11 shooting, the 5-foot-10 senior had seven assists and five steals, and also took two charges as CSUB flexed its defensive muscles throughout.

Freshman Jaden Alexander and sophomore Corey Stephenson had big nights off the bench for Bakersfield, combining for 29 points.

Alexander posted a career-best in scoring for the second straight night, following up his nine points against the Bulldogs with 17 on Tuesday on a 7 of 10 performance from the field.

He had a steal and monster slam to cap a 14-0 to start the second half as the lead balloons to 69-30 and also made an acrobatic catch and reverse finish off a lob from Stephenson to push the lead to 40 points with 13:20 to play.

"Coaches always tell us that once you get that opportunity you have to do what you have to do," Alexander said. "If you get the opportunity and you don't produce, that's on you at the end of the day. It was definitely a confidence booster for sure, but in my mind I'm never going to tell myself I played great. I'm about to get back to it, just throw it down the drain and get back to it."

Stephenson scored his 14 points in streaks. He scored back-to-back baskets at the rim off spin moves during his team's 21-5 stretch to open the second half, and then had eight straight points, including consecutive 3-pointers with the game winding down and CSUB leading 98-54.

Marvin McGhee III added 12 points, four steals and three 3-pointers and Okereke had 11 for the Roadrunners, who travel to face South Dakota on Saturday.

"I thought we came in tonight, for both halves, I saw some good stuff from different guys," Barnes said. "And I think that's why the margin of victory was what it was. So it's about going to South Dakota and playing good in the first half and then getting out of the half (and playing strong). And that's one of the things that's better than we've had in past years, we started off the second half and kind of held our own, where in past years we'd come out of the dressing room and not be locked in or focused, and didn't play well. And they're doing that now. I thought tonight, even with the big lead, we had some guys that were really focused and that's why we were able to push the lead on out."