Taze Moore and his teammates did not commit much time seeking to determine what their identity would be for the 2020-21 season.

“We desired to be capable to make stops in the course of the activity, keep folks to 50 details and get a full bunch of rebounds,” said Moore, a redshirt senior forward on the Cal Point out Bakersfield men’s basketball workforce.

Though there have been hiccups with the initial objective early in the period, stops were being a lot easier to arrive by for the protection through a pair of online games towards Cal Poly over the weekend. Following allowing 49 points to the Mustangs on Friday, the Roadrunners surrendered just 50 in a rematch Saturday en route to a pair of wins that upped their record to 3-1 in Massive West engage in.

As for the “get a total bunch of rebounds objective,” very well that is been attained with much more consistency.

By means of 11 game titles, CSUB (7-4), has held held a rebounding edge in excess of nine of its opponents.

The Roadrunners entered Monday with a rebound differential of additionally-11.8, the fifth greatest mark in the nation. They have held a double-digit gain on the glass in 6 of individuals online games and had a extend of three-consecutive video games exactly where they out-rebounded their opponents by much more than 20. 

Issues have been specially very good on the offensive glass. The Roadrunners are pulling down 15.91 offensive rebounds for every sport, the 2nd-very best mark in the whole country. Actively playing the identical amount of game titles, chief North Carolina has a person much more offensive rebound (176-175), than CSUB.

Perhaps the most spectacular issue about the rebounding run is that the ‘Runners are accomplishing it devoid of any genuinely dominant gamers inside. Ten players are averaging at minimum 2.4 boards a sport, while Ronne Readus (6.1) is the only just one pulling down additional than 5 a contest.

“Which is our identity,” heart Shawn Stith claimed immediately after Friday’s win more than Cal Poly. “Groups assume us to do selected things and we won’t be able to enable them down. When they play us, they have acquired to anticipate … we’re going to hit the glass. We’ve just obtained to give them what they predicted.”

The expectation inside of the locker place is that these types of performances will continue on to be the norm for the relaxation of the season.

“This is the just one yr I feel like it really is all coming alongside,” Moore mentioned. “The coaches are pushing us to go rebound since we’re probably the most athletic group we’ve experienced considering that I’ve been in this article. For us to be as athletic as we are and not to get rebounds, that would be a issue for us.”

‘Runner ladies return with highway upset

Even getting on the floor during a difficult 2020-21 period has been a acquire for the CSUB women’s basketball crew, and the challenges have manufactured effects like the a person the ‘Runners obtained Sunday really feel all the additional distinctive.

Owning shed 4 straight coming in, CSUB rode a balanced scoring assault to an 81-69 earn above defending Mountain West typical season winner Fresno Condition Sunday.

Lexus Environmentally friendly finished with 14 factors and 6 helps, though Jayden Eggleston recorded a 13-point, 13-rebound double-double. All told, 4 CSUB players scored in double figures, with 7 gamers recording at minimum 6 details.

The ‘Runners pulled away with a 23-position fourth quarter, kick-begun by 3-ideas by Andie Easley and Green on consecutive belongings. Easley strike a few triples in the fourth quarter and the Roadrunners closed matters out with seven consecutive designed cost-free throws.

The recreation was at first scheduled to be played on Dec. 17 and was built up just after CSUB experienced a pair of convention video games against Cal Poly canceled around the weekend.

Each the males and girls will face Hawaii this coming weekend. The gentlemen vacation to facial area the Warriors when the girls will host them at 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday.