Titans Decide They’re Not Finished

RENO, Nev. â€”  For a team that didn’t want its season to end, the second half of Cal State Fullerton’s Big West men’s basketball tournament game against Boise State sure seemed to last forever.

“That’s what the guys on the bench were saying,� Fullerton guard Chris St. Clair said.

Eighteen minutes is an eternity when you have a 17-point lead to protect and a season to salvage. As it turned out, 18 minutes wasn’t enough time for Boise State to come back, or enough time for Fullerton to throw everything away.

The 89-82 victory brought the Titans one step closer to an NCAA tournament berth, even though “That’s not what we’re playing for,� Fullerton guard Kenroy Jarrett said.

“Right now, we’re playing for respectability,� he said, “letting people know that we’re better than we showed this season.�

A 12-15 record won’t impress anybody. Perhaps there aren’t many good things to be said about the Titans, but now at least there are some things you can’t say. You can’t say they haven’t won a postseason game since 1990, for instance.

Now the Titans can move on to their semifinal game against Utah State, while the Boise folks can get back to doing whatever it is they do--grow potatoes and host NCAA tournament games, I suppose.

(Why does the NCAA always put games in Boise? Is there some great Idaho basketball tradition I don’t know about? If the NCAA is going to hold tournament games in sites that are remote, why not play in Hawaii?)

Historical note: Twenty years after the school’s unlikely run at an NCAA Final Four spot, Fullerton has managed to land in the final four of the Big West tournament.

Hey, it’s a start.

There were plenty of unlikely scenarios about Friday’s game, too. Like the Titans winning despite a three-for-10 shooting effort by Ike Harmon. Or Harmon, a 52% free-throw shooter on the season, making up for his field-goal deficiencies by making nine of 11 free throws.

And when Boise State made its last push and was lingering within six points of the Titans with seven minutes remaining, who put the game out of reach? Craig Whitehead, who recently endured five straight games without a point.

On three straight possessions, Whitehead made three jumpers, the last a three-pointer to put the Titans ahead, 71-55, with 4:32 left.

“I don’t know what came over me,� said Whitehead, who finished with 14 points.

Whatever it was, it was contagious. Everyone who played made some type of contribution, and the scoring was spread throughout the roster. (The Broncos, on the other hand, received 56 of their 82 points from two players.)

It’s usually a good sign when two players have double-doubles, and in this case it was 12 points and 10 assists for St. Clair and 15 points and 11 rebounds for Harmon.

Kenroy Jarrett made only two shots, but one of them was a three-pointer that came right after Boise State guard Gerry Washington made a bad alley-oop pass on a fast break late in the first half. A Boise State basket would have cut Fullerton’s lead to 10 and given the Broncos some momentum going into halftime. Instead, Jarrett’s three-pointer put the Titans ahead by 14.

Even Corey Sanders got something out of his eight minutes on the court. His long arms kept the ball alive on a missed free throw by Harmon, the Titans got possession and Harmon was fouled again, this time making the two free throws. Sanders also put back a missed shot by Harmon.

St. Clair, who candidly said his own lack of leadership was a cause of Fullerton’s woes this season, set the tone Friday. He wasn’t backing down from anyone.

“They like to play tough ‘D,’ � St. Clair said of the Broncos. “We were pushing and shoving as well as them.�

Twice, the 6-foot St. Clair tangled with Kenny Van Kirk--Boise State’s 6-11 starting center--and they were called for double fouls. It wound up doing more damage to Boise State, because Van Kirk fouled out with 7:03 left in the game.

St. Clair stuck around. His pass to Mark Richardson for a layup put the Titans up by 16 with 4:32 remaining, and when Boise State called time out St. Clair started letting out primal screams on his way back to the huddle.

Maybe this season wasn’t something to write home about. For one day, it was worth shouting about.