Fullerton Uses Defense, Hot Free-Throw Shooting To Beat Texas Tech, 80-67

Forward Henry Turner got his first career start for Cal State Fullerton Thursday night, and after the Titans had recorded a 80-67 nonconference win over previously unbeaten Texas Tech, the quiet sophomore had this observation: “It was a real good win for us . . . we just have to get all these wins in The House.�

“The House� is Titan Gym, Fullerton’s cozy on-campus facility, and as far as the Titans are concerned, there’s definitely no place like home. Home, after all, is where the ball--and the officiating--just seems to bounce your way.

Fullerton (4-3) made 38 of 47 free throws; the Red Raiders (1-3) made just 9 of 14.

Gerald Myers has been head coach at Texas Tech for 15 years and he’s spent about half that time playing in the other guy’s gym. But with 6:16 left to play, he could take no more of this one and ran out to center court to complain--loudly and in a most animated fashion. All 1,956 in attendance had a great view of the veins in his neck.

“Whew, I ain’t never seen anything like that before,� Fullerton’s Kevin Henderson said. “He was really out there. I think he was a little upset ‘cause I was holding that guy.�

Just a little, Kevin.

Myers got a technical foul, of course, but it was too late to start motivating his players. The Titans were leading by 11 points and the Red Raiders, who won the Southwest Conference last season, were about to start fouling on purpose, anyway.

When they did, it was Henderson who had the ball most of the time, and he set a school record by hitting all 14 free-throw attempts. He finished with a game-high 24 points.

Two other Titans--guards Eugene Jackson and Alexander Hamilton--were perfect at the line (4-for-4) and four more missed just one free-throw attempt.

Myers wasn’t about to blame the officials afterward, though.

“We just didn’t do a very good job when the game was on the line,� he said. “They are a very quick team and that had a lot to do with our problems, too.�

Fullerton’s quickness translates best into aggressive defensive play and that defense was showcased Thursday night. The Titans had 18 steals and forced 21 turnovers on the night.

In their first six games, the Titans have been consistently strong on defense and consistently predictable on offense. But the mold was broken Thursday.

Kerry Boagni, who had been the Titans’ top scorer in every game but one, had just five points this time, but he had career highs in assists (7) and steals (6).

And, remarkably, Fullerton’s beleaguered inside players--Turner, Vincent Blow and Tee Williamson--combined for 27 points (9 each).

“When you get the ball inside, a lot of good things start to happen,� Titan Coach George McQuarn said. “We finally started to get a little bit out of our inside game.

“I thought we sustained our intensity for about 35 minutes tonight and played really hard at both ends of the court. We went to a zone (defense) for a while and they really struggled against it. We’re basically a man-to-man team and I don’t think they were really prepared for the zone.�

The Titans had a two-point lead (46-44) with 13:20 to play and switched to the zone. Ten minutes later, Fullerton was up by 13 and practicing its free-throw shooting.

Fullerton did more than play defense and shoot free throws, though. They handled Texas Tech’s press, something they failed to do in losing to Utah in the championship game of the Utah Classic.

“McQuarn has drilled us on handling the pressure every day since that game,� Henderson said. “I haven’t played point guard that long (he moved over from off-guard at midseason last year) and I haven’t had a lot of experience. But I’ve got my head on straight now and I can only get better at it.�

Boagni, who has made his reputation--and the great majority of his points--hitting uncontested long-range baseline jumpers, was playing power forward Thursday night.

“It was more of an adjustment defensively,� he said. “The difference offensively is that these guys have scouted us since day one and they know we’re a perimeter team. They’re spreading their defense out and leaving the post open. Tonight, we were able to take advantage of that.�

Texas Tech had four players in double figures, but that’s a bit misleading considering Dewayne Chism was the Red Raiders’ top scorer with 13. Despite Fullerton’s defense, Texas Tech shot a more-than-respectable 58% from the floor.