SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The CSUSB men's basketball team eliminated Cal State San Marcos in the West Region Semifinals on Saturday night, improving their win streak to 14 straight games. With their 29
th win of the season, the 2022-23 Yotes add yet another label to their historic run - the winningest team in program history. The record previously belonged to the 2001-02 team that collected 28 wins in their Elite Eight run. Earlier this year, the No. 6 ranked Yotes also became the highest scoring team in program history, currently sitting at 2,830 points on the season.
This is the first time the Yotes have advanced to a West Region Final since 2006-07, where they defeated Humboldt State (now Cal Poly Humboldt). CSUSB went on to lose in the Final Four to the eventual national champion Barton.
After struggling to find open shots in the quarterfinals, CSUSB's two leading scorers in
Brandon Knapper and
Dontrell Shuler got back to their scoring ways against CSUSM, scoring 18 and 16 points respectively. When the dynamic duo finds their rhythm, CSUSB is a force to be reckoned with. Knapper went 6-for-17 from the field while making two treys, inching him ever so close to the CSUSB three-point record. The Ontario native now only needs three treys to tie the program record (188), and four to break it.
Eddie Davis continues to be a consistent threat for the Yotes' offense, scoring double digits in the last TWENTY consecutive games. The First Team All-CCAA senior was also second on the team with seven rebounds against the Cougars, while
Robby Robinson led the team with nine.
The Yotes maintained the lead for all of the first half and most of the second, bringing the lead to as high as 14 with six minutes to go. However, San Marcos made and aggressive push over the next three minutes, going on a 15-4 run to bring the game right back within two at 59-57. Back-to-back layups by Davis and a jumper by Shuler in the paint gave the 'Dino Boys just enough separation to hang on for the win.
Up Next
The #2 Yotes will face the #1 Point Loma Sea Lions in the West Region Finals – the equivalent of the Sweet 16 - on Monday night at 7:00 PM in Golden Gym. This has been the matchup everyone on the west coast has been asking for, as the Sea Lions are currently in the middle of an impressive 25-game win streak dating back to November, while the Yotes have won 14 in a row dating back to January.
Since the start of the new year, it has been apparent that these two squads were on a collision course to face each other in the regional finals. PLNU is ranked No. 4 and CSUSB is ranked No. 6 in the country, marking the highest nationally-ranked matchup in the entire NCAA tournament thus far. We will see which winning streak comes to an end on Monday night, and which team will head to Indiana for the Elite Eight.
You can check out the
Tournament Central page for game information and tickets, or listen in on KMET 1490 AM.
