Wednesday, March 12th, 9:00 p.m. (et)

FACTS & STATS: Site: Anaheim Convention Center Arena (7,734) -- Anaheim, California. Television: None. Home Record: LBS 5-7, UCI 12-2. Away Record: LBS 1-15, UCI 3-10. Neutral Record: LBS 0-1, UCI 0-3. Conference Record: LBS 3-12, UCI 9-7. Series Record: Long Beach State leads, 48-29.

GAME NOTES: The Long Beach State 49ers will begin their Big West title defense this evening when they take on the UC Irvine Anteaters in first round play at the Anaheim Convention Center Arena. Last season the 49ers grabbed their fourth Big West title, but reclaiming that honor this season could be tough. Long Beach collected only six victories on the year, and finished with a terrible 3-12 conference mark, which places the team in the eighth seed. As for the Anteaters, they won six of their last games on the season, earning the fifth seed with a mediocre 9-7 Big West ledger. UCI has struggled in this tournament in the past, posting a meager 17-25 record, while never claiming the conference championship. With respect to the all-time series between the two schools, the 49ers have a strong 48-29 edge over UC Irvine. However, the Anteaters won both meetings this season against Long Beach.

Without Donovan Morris, the 49ers would have suffered a much worse overall record on the season. The explosive guard led the 49ers with 20.6 ppg and 5.2 rpg. Morris also finished with team-highs in assists (65) and steals (23). Unfortunately there is not another player on the roster for Long Beach that is producing double figures. In fact, the team's second leading scorer is Darnell Porter, who is chipping in only 7.4 ppg while shooing 38.2 percent from the floor. The lack of production has led to a pathetic 62.5 ppg, which places the team eighth in the Big West in scoring.

The Anteaters are not overly impressive at the offensive end of the floor, but when compared to their counterpart, UCI is a bit more balanced. Patrick Sanders is currently leading the squad with 15.8 ppg, while also pulling down 4.6 rpg. Darren Fells has been the main source of production in the paint for UCI, as the forward is netting 14.2 ppg to go along with a team-high 6.8 rpg. Sanders and Fells combined have done the majority of the damage for UCI, which is averaging 68.5 ppg. Not to be overlooked is the play of the Anteaters at the defensive end of the floor. UCI is limiting teams to just 66.2 ppg, and has forced a strong 15.4 turnovers per matchup.

Long Beach State has plenty of problems at both ends of the floor and should struggle this evening against UCI. The dangerous tandem of Sanders and Fells should be enough for the Anteaters to move forward in this tournament.

Predicted Outcome

UC Irvine 71, Long Beach State 64