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Cal State Fullerton battles UC Riverside in season-ending loss

March 9, 2025

FULLERTON — The Cal State Fullerton men’s basketball team played its most competitive game in six weeks but fell short of an upset in its season finale.

Barrington Hargress scored 22 points and UC Riverside held on to hand Fullerton its 12th consecutive loss, 64-59, on Saturday night at Titan Gym. Isaiah Moses added 12 points and Jack Whitbourn had 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Highlanders (21-11 overall, 14-6 Big West), who finished in a tie for third place and will be the No. 3 seed for next week’s eight-team Big West Tournament in Henderson, Nevada. They will face an opponent to be determined in a quarterfinal on Thursday night.

Kaleb Brown had 14 points and Zach Visentin scored 13 in his final game for the Titans (6-26, 1-19), who cut an eight-point deficit to two with 16 seconds left but could not topple the Highlanders. Kobe Young had 10 points and 11 rebounds and Keith Richard added 10 points and seven rebounds for Fullerton, which failed to qualify for the conference tournament for the second straight season.

Moses gave UCR a 54-46 lead on a 3-pointer with 5:56 left, but the Titans refused to surrender. Visentin converted a three-point play then added a jumper in the paint to make it a three-point game. Keith Richard then scored on a tip-in of a Young miss to cut the margin to 54-53 with 3:57 remaining.

A Niyi Olabode 3-pointer gave UCR a four-point lead, then Fullerton missed shots on three straight possessions (two from close range) and Riverside’s Nate Pickens made a layup for a 61-55 lead with 45 seconds left. Richard then rebounded his own miss and drew a foul, making one of two free throws.

Hargress missed a free throw with 31 seconds left, and Brown answered with a 3-pointer that cut the lead to 61-59 with 16 seconds left. Fullerton was forced to foul and Pickens made a pair of free throws with 13 seconds left, then Brown missed a 3-point attempt and Hargress split a pair of free throws to close the scoring.

On senior night, the Titans opted for size with the 6-foot-9 Visentin replacing the inactive Donovan Oday (6-2) in the starting lineup. Both teams struggled to make shots early, but Brown made two 3-pointers to help the Titans open a 17-10 lead less than 10 minutes into the game.

The game was a physical, defensive grind, with Young and Antwan Robinson doing strong work on the boards to keep Hargress and UCR from gaining momentum. Young hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:28 left and the teams went to the locker room knotted at 25-all at halftime. Fullerton shot 32% from the field (10 for 31) in the first half, and the Highlanders shot just 23% (7 for 30).

The second half remained tight throughout, setting the stage for the drama of the final six minutes.

UCR shot much better in the second half (15 for 26, 58%), while Fullerton still struggled to find its range (11 for 29, 38%) in a game that featured eight ties and seven lead changes.

In an improvement from some of their recent lopsided losses, the Titans had just nine turnovers.

Fullerton won its only conference game at Long Beach State on Jan. 18 and hadn’t lost a game by less than 15 points since an eight-point defeat to UC Santa Barbara on Jan. 25. Before Saturday, the Titans had dropped their previous five games by 37, 30, 25, 45 and 39 points.

BIG WEST STANDINGS

Final regular-season standings, through Saturday, March 8

UC San Diego – 28-4, 18-2

UC Irvine – 27-5, 17-3

CS Northridge – 22-9, 14-6

UC Riverside – 21-11, 14-6

UC Santa Barbara – 19-12, 11-9

UC Davis – 15-16, 9-11

Cal Poly (SLO) – 14-18, 8-12

CS Bakersfield – 14-18, 8-12

Hawaii – 15-16, 7-13

Long Beach State – 7-25, 3-17

CS Fullerton – 6-26, 1-19

Orange County Register

News Details

Cal State Fullerton battles UC Riverside in season-ending loss

BIG WEST STANDINGS

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