Everyone Can Be a Contender at Tournament Time

RENO — It really does happen sometimes.

Lightning strikes, and a lightly regarded team gets hot and wins its postseason tournament and a berth in the NCAA tournament.

“Anything can happen in a three-game tournament,” Fullerton Coach Bob Hawking said. “And it’s everyone’s dream to get it going at this time of the year.”

The Big West Conference men’s basketball tournament begins today in the Lawlor Events Center in Reno. Hawking’s Titans (11-15, 6-10 in conference) play Boise State (17-12, 9-7) at 2:30 p.m.

In other first-round games today, Utah State (22-7, 13-3) meets Long Beach State (10-18, 5-11) at noon; Pacific (21-8, 14-2) plays Idaho (15-11, 9-7) at 6 p.m., and UC Irvine (9-17, 6-10) meets Nevada (15-11, 11-5) at 8:30 p.m.

Two years ago, San Jose State won the Big West title in its last season in the conference. The Spartans were seeded sixth in a six-team tournament after finishing the regular season 13-17, 9-9.

In 1994, Irvine was seeded last in a 10-team tournament field, but the Anteaters reeled off consecutive victories against Santa Barbara, Utah State and Pacific. Their run ended with a 70-64 loss to New Mexico State, but it was in the championship game at Las Vegas.

In 1992, eighth-seeded Irvine upset top-seeded Santa Barbara in the tournament’s first round, but was beaten by Pacific in the semifinals.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of Fullerton’s dramatic postseason run, coming one basket away from the Final Four. The Titans won the Pacific Coast Athletic Assn. title as the third-seeded team and didn’t lose until the NCAA Regional final.

The Titans, however, haven’t even won a Big West tournament game since 1990.

“Three games in 2 1/2 days favors the teams with depth, and the teams with the best records usually are the ones with the most depth,” Irvine Coach Pat Douglass said. “We tend to get worn down by our lack of depth.”

That’s why Douglass gives the advantage to a team such as Nevada, the Anteaters’ opponent tonight. Nevada was 8-0 at home in conference play, and defeated Irvine, 86-75, in the only meeting between the teams.

“Nevada has had a great run at home, and a team that’s fresh, playing on its home floor, has an advantage,” Douglass said. “But we wanted our kids to experience this tournament, playing in front of big crowds. Some day we want to win it. We need the experience of playing here first.”

Hawking says Pacific and Utah State, each seeded No. 1 from its division, are the teams to beat.

Pacific has the conference’s most dominant player in 7-foot center Michael Olowokandi, who leads the conference in scoring (21.8), rebounding (11.1), field goal shooting (62.3%) and blocked shots (2.7).

Fullerton might have the most competitive first-round game when it meets Boise State. The Titans lost to the Broncos, 76-74, in mid-January in Titan Gym when Roberto Bergersen scored 21 points and connected on a jump shot at the finish to win it. Boise State shot 60.9% from the floor in that game, Fullerton 51.2%.

The Titans also were beaten earlier that week at home by Idaho, 76-73.

“Our kids lost a little confidence when we lost those close games,” Hawking said.

Senior guard Chris Dade was having dental problems at the time--he had four wisdom teeth pulled the next week--and sophomore Ike Harmon was troubled by a sprained toe.

“We’re playing better basketball now than when we were in that slump,” Hawking said. “We’re rebounding better and we’re more effective on the offensive side. We’ve played pretty good defense all year.”

How well the Titans defend against Bergersen could be a key to getting Fullerton off on the right foot in the tournament.

“We’ll put a lot of emphasis on him, but they’re not a one-dimensional team,” Hawking said. “ We’ll need to do a good job on their other people too.”

Only Pacific and Utah State have better conference records on the road than Fullerton’s 4-4. And five of Fullerton’s 10 conference defeats were by three or fewer points.

Long Beach State faces a big challenge against Utah State, which defeated the 49ers, 69-55, in early January. The 49ers have lost their last four games and eight of their last 10.

“But our kids aren’t down,” Long Beach Coach Wayne Morgan said. “They think they can still win.”

The key for the 49ers is 7-1 center Andrew Betts, who is averaging 18.7 points and 10.4 rebounds during conference play. Marcus Saxon leads Utah State with an average of 16.1 points.

Long Beach guard Quincy Nuckles, who has been sidelined since Jan. 17 because of a fractured left thumb, practiced with the team this week, but his status for today’s game is uncertain.

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Men’s College Basketball

* What: Big West Conference men’s championships

* When: First round today, semifinals Saturday, final Sunday

* Where: Lawlor Events Center, Reno

* First-round games:

Noon--Utah State (22-7, 13-3) vs. Long Beach State (10-18, 5-11)

2:30 p.m.--Cal State Fullerton (11-15, 6-10) vs. Boise State (17-12, 9-7)

6--Pacific (21-8, 14-2) vs. Idaho (15-11, 9-7)

8:30--UC Irvine (9-17, 6-10) vs. Nevada (15-11, 11-5)

* Semifinals: 5 p.m.--Utah State-Long Beach State winner vs. Cal State Fullerton-Boise State winner; 7:30--Pacific-Idaho winner vs. UC Irvine-Nevada winner