Long Beach Opens Pyramid in Grand Fashion, 71-64

When they wax nostalgic about the evening at Long Beach State--they will, count on it--anyone who had anything to do with the opening of the Pyramid can smile a smile of success.

They earned it.

The long-awaited opening of the university’s new pyramid-shaped arena was a resounding smash, as Long Beach defeated Detroit Mercy, 71-64, Wednesday night in front of 5,021, the largest on-campus athletic crowd in school history.

A pregame laser show got the crowd in a festive mood--and the team kept it that way. Long Beach built a 12-point first-half lead, watched it shrink to three and then turned on the talent.

Fittingly, senior forward Mike Atkinson led the way in the 49ers’ season opener. Atkinson scored 21 points on seven of 11 shooting.

“We needed some senior leadership tonight,” Atkinson said. “I had the jitters early on, but as soon as that first shot went down I felt great. After that, I was looking for my shot all night.”

Said Coach Seth Greenberg: “Mike was Mike.”

After trailing by as many as 12 in the first half, Detroit Mercy (1-1) cut the lead to 44-41 when Iyapo Montgomery made two free throws with 16:34 to play. But the 49ers increased their defensive pressure, and led, 52-45, with 14 minutes left on a basket by Atkinson.

Long Beach regained command with 8:59 to play. An acrobatic shot under the basket by guard Jamie Davis gave the 49ers a 58-50 lead.

Then point guard Rasul Salahuddin brought the crowd to its feet. With 8:27 to play, he drove the left baseline and dunked.

Atkinson scored 13 points as the 49ers took a 42-32 halftime lead. Atkinson gave Long Beach its first lead in the Pyramid, 20-19, by making two free throws with 9:33 to play.

As usual, Atkinson, who led the nation in field-goal percentage last season, was at his best near the basket. His teammates got him the ball in the post and Atkinson made four of five shots.

Detroit Mercy was led by senior point guard Michael Jackson, who scored 14 points.