LONG BEACH, Calif. – With two-and-a-half-minutes to play, Fresno State erased an 11-point deficit on Saturday afternoon at Walter Pyramid to defeat Long Beach State 72-69.
Starting the game 2-of-21 from the field, the Bulldogs trailed by double digits throughout the game, and by as much as 17 with just over seven minutes to play. Despite the struggles through much of the contest, the 'Dogs scored on its final seven possessions to flip the game.
Amar Augillard led all scorers with 25 points, scoring 16 in the second half. Mykell Robinson added 16 points, going 10-of-10 at the charity stripe. David Douglas Jr., scored 10 points which included the game's go-ahead field goal.
Fresno State's offense was aided by the free-throw line which saw a difference of 40 attempts. The Bulldogs shot 30-of-44.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Trailing 17-5, Fresno State scored its first bucket with 12:52 on the clock on a drive from David Douglas Jr.
Fresno State was forced to continue trying to get to the free-throw line with their shots not falling throughout the opening half. The Bulldogs started the game just 1-of-18 before Amar Aguillard got to the bucket with 7:47 left in half. Following a 3-pointer from Long Beach State at the top of the key to go up 15 with under four to play, the 'Dogs struck twice in 18 seconds to pull back to 34-24.
Fresno State trailed 39-28 at the half. The Bulldogs shot just 5-of-29 (17.2%) from the field but took 25 attempts at the line, converting on 17 (68.0%).
A pair of threes from Augillard early in the half kept the deficit hovering around 10.
With 13:58 on the clock and Fresno State trailing by 13, a baseline drive by Brian Amuneke and a steal on the inbound pass from Douglas Jr., kicked-started a 7-0 run in less than 90 seconds. That run continued into a 13-2 stretch. A triple from Augillard with 7:21 to go pulled the 'Dogs within two at 56-54, prompting a timeout call from LBSU head coach Chris Acker.
With 6:33 remaining and the home team leading by two, a flagrant foul call on Elijah Price led to a five-point possession that pushed the Beach's advantage back to seven. That lead was extended to 11 with just over three minutes to play.
Already forcing nine turnovers in the second half, Fresno State turned up the pressure even more in the final minutes forcing another four. Those turnovers resulted in points. None bigger was a five-second call on Long Beach State with 42 seconds left and the 'Dogs trailing by two after a four-point possession.
Following the turnover, Augillard kicked a pass to Douglas Jr., on the wing where the sophomore sank his second 3-pointer of the day. LBSU had two chances on its final possession, down 72-69, but came up empty.
NOTES
Fresno State overcame a 17-point deficit to win by three, 20-point difference over the final seven minutes.
Fresno State took 44 free-throw attempts. It missed the program record of 47 by three, a record that has stood since 1996.
Fresno State forced 19 turnovers with 13 of those coming in the second half.
Fresno State took 40 more attempts at the line than Long Beach State (44-4).
Amar Augillard led the Bulldogs in scoring for the third time this season with 25 points. It was his third 20-point outing.
Mykell Robinson was in double figures for the second straight game, posting 16 points. The redshirt junior finished a perfect 10-of-10 from the charity stripe.
Robinson dished out a game-high five assists.
Playing 30 minutes off the bench, David Douglas Jr., had his first double-figure scoring game for the 'Dogs with 10 points.
The sophomore also collected a career-high four steals.
Mor Seck grabbed 10 rebounds, his second straight game with at least 10. Seven of those 10 were on the offensive end.
Fresno State came into the game shorthanded with nine available players.
Brian Amuneke earned the first start of his career in his second game.