Long Beach State relishes beating USC in front of LeBron James

Marcus Tsohonis recognized LeBron James had arrived before he even saw him.

A murmur rippled through the sold-out Galen Center as Tsohonis and his Long Beach State teammates stood with their backs to the floor awaiting the national anthem. Almost immediately, Tsohonis noticed fans craning their necks and fumbling for their phones.

“All you could see were phones lighting up,” Tsohonis told Yahoo Sports. “Then a whole bunch of people started shouting, ‘LeBron! LeBron! LeBron!’”

To most observers, the story of Sunday’s USC-Long Beach State game was Bronny James’ comeback from cardiac arrest. LeBron’s eldest son was less than five months removed from crumpling to the Galen Center floor without warning during a summer training session with his USC teammates.

To Long Beach State, the high-profile matchup with the Trojans was about more than Bronny’s return to basketball. The 49ers arrived hungry to spoil USC’s party, to topple a preseason Top 25 team and to make a name for themselves playing in front of a basketball icon that many of them grew up idolizing.

When USC hinted last week that Bronny intended to make his college debut Sunday, Long Beach State coach Dan Monson didn’t hesitate to use that to motivate his team. Monson told his players that USC would have a big crowd teeming with NBA luminaries and that the Trojans “were going to want to put on a show” at Long Beach State’s expense.

“They want you to be the Washington Generals,” Monson explained to his team, only to be met with nothing but blank stares.

Turns out most of the Long Beach State players were too young to get the reference to the perpetual patsies for the Harlem Globetrotters.

“My kids had no idea who the Washington Generals were,” Monson, 62, said with a laugh. “I had to give them a little history lesson.”

It wasn’t until Monson brought up LeBron that his message finally resonated.

“He’s coming to watch his son,” Monson said, “but make him leave talking about you guys, too.”

The gameday atmosphere Sunday at the Galen Center was everything Monson promised his team it would be. Fans paid hundreds or even thousands of dollars to purchase tickets on the secondary market. Students began lining up outside the arena hours before tipoff to guarantee themselves a seat. So many media outlets requested credentials that USC had to add rows of overflow press seating.

For awhile, USC fed off the energy of a crowd that roared when Bronny checked into the game seven minutes into the first half and only got louder each time he touched the ball. The Trojans led by as many as 17 points late in the first half.

Long Beach State rallied behind a player whom Monson benched to start Sunday’s game. Tsohonis, a fifth-year senior who leads Long Beach State in scoring, didn’t check in for the game’s opening 10 minutes because Monson was unhappy with his effort level during practice last Thursday.

“I feel like if my best player isn’t going to go all in during practice, why is anyone else going to?” Monson told Yahoo Sports. “What impressed me is that Marcus understood my decision and he played harder than I’ve ever seen him play. He trusted that I wasn’t just picking on him.”

All but five of Tsohonis’ game-high 28 points came after halftime as Long Beach State defended more urgently, got out in transition and cut into USC’s lead. Tsohonis’ biggest basket tied the game at 74 with 3.9 seconds left in regulation. He used a screen to get a favorable matchup against USC’s Boogie Ellis, backed him down into the paint and then hit a short jump shot over his outstretched arm.

Long Beach State’s 84-79 overtime victory was its fourth road win this season and its third against a power-conference opponent. The 49ers (7-4) have also beaten Michigan and DePaul, solidifying them as a threat to dethrone UC Irvine and UC Santa Barbara in the Big West and a potential tough NCAA tournament draw for someone.

Asked if he glanced in LeBron’s direction after some of his biggest buckets, Tsohonis sheepishly admitted that he couldn’t help it.

“I was trying not to think about him being there,” he said, “but that’s definitely my GOAT in basketball.”

Tsohonis and his teammates received some kind words from LeBron outside their locker room a few minutes after the final buzzer. As he weaved his way past them, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar told the starstruck 49ers, “Good win, y’all. Good win.” LeBron specifically singled out Tsohonis, praising him for his performance.

“I saw some of my teammates’ jaws open and I was the same way,” Tsohonis admitted. “Even the slightest compliment from the best player ever to do it is pretty huge.”

THE COUNTDOWN: FIVE BIGGEST EARLY DISAPPOINTMENTS

1. Michigan State (4-5, 0-2)

So much for this being Tom Izzo’s best remaining chance at capturing a second national title. Nine games into the new season, the preseason No. 4 Spartans have just one win against a team 298th or better in Ken Pomeroy’s rankings. The root of Michigan State’s issues so far has been an over-reliance on fifth-year guard Tyson Walker to sink tough shots in order to win big games. Veterans AJ Hoggard, Jaden Akins and Mady Sissoko have been underwhelming and a promising recruiting class hasn’t fully gained Izzo’s trust. Then Sunday, in a 77-70 loss at Nebraska, the Spartans’ vaunted defense deserted them. Michigan State will pile up a lot more losses this season if it allows 1.17 points per possession.

2. Saint Mary’s (5-5, 0-0)

Saint Mary’s lands high on this list despite its road win over previously unbeaten Colorado State over the weekend. That’s how ugly non-conference play has been for a team that returned a bunch of key players from last year’s NCAA tournament run and was projected to dethrone Gonzaga in the WCC preseason poll. A home loss to Weber State was an ominous sign. Losses to San Diego State, Xavier, Utah and Boise State followed. Power-conference teams have plenty of opportunities to make up for slow starts, but Saint Mary’s doesn’t have that luxury playing in the WCC. The Gaels will have to be near-perfect the rest of the way or their only realistic NCAA tournament path will be winning the WCC tournament.

3. Maryland (5-4, 1-1)

With maybe its three best players returning from last year’s NCAA tournament team, Maryland had plenty of reason for optimism entering the new season. Jahmir Young, Julian Reese and Donta Scott seemed to be a formidable enough trio to ensure a return to the NCAA tournament. What’s happened instead is that Maryland’s offense has collapsed. The Terps are shooting 22.4% from behind the arc, second worst in Division I, and they’re also too careless with the basketball. The result has been losses away from home to Davidson, UAB, Villanova and Indiana. Even after Saturday’s overtime home win against Penn State, Maryland will still travel to UCLA on Dec. 22 in search of its first victory over a top-100 opponent.

4. Duke (6-3, 0-1)

For a team widely projected to make the Final Four and even win the national title entering the season, Duke has been underwhelming. The Blue Devils have lost to three of the four power-conference opponents they have faced, their lone win coming at the expense of struggling Michigan State. Tyrese Proctor not taking a significant sophomore leap has been a major issue. So has the fact that opposing defenses have been able to sag off Mark Mitchell or whoever the Blue Devils play alongside Kyle Filipowski. It also doesn’t help that Duke often plays without a true rim protector. It’s way too early to write off a team with as many as four or five projected NBA draft picks in its rotation, but Duke’s early struggles have been a disappointment. After all, this isn’t a team of one-and-dones. Five of the Blue Devils’ top eight players are returners from last year’s 26-win team.

5. Oklahoma State (4-5, 0-0)

Oklahoma State didn’t receive any preseason AP Top 25 votes, but the Cowboys weren’t projected to struggle like this either. They’ve dropped games to the likes of Abilene Christian, Southern Illinois and rebuilding Notre Dame, a poor start made even more glaring by rival Oklahoma winning its first nine games. A lack of continuity has contributed to Oklahoma State’s early woes. Only three scholarship players returned from a team that was among the best not to make the NCAA tournament last season. This year’s team isn’t a defensive juggernaut like last year’s, nor does it appear to have made marked offensive improvement. Free-throw shooting and perimeter shooting, in particular, have been a struggle so far.

UPCOMING MUST-SEE MATCHUPS

• UConn vs. Gonzaga, Friday, 10 p.m. in Seattle (ESPN2)

• Kansas at Indiana, Saturday, 12:30 p.m. (CBS)

• Baylor vs. Michigan State, Saturday, 2 p.m. in Detroit (FOX)

• Texas A&M vs. Houston, Saturday, 2:30 p.m. in Houston (ESPN2)

• Ohio State vs. UCLA, Saturday, 3 p.m. in Atlanta (CBS)

• Arizona vs. Purdue, Saturday, 4:30 p.m. in Indianapolis (Peacock)

• North Carolina vs. Kentucky, Saturday, 5:30 p.m. in Atlanta (CBS)

(All times are Eastern)

GET A LOAD OF THIS

Last Wednesday, Purdue Fort Wayne’s Rasheed Bello lost his right shoe in the middle of a play. Then he got creative.

Purdue Fort Wayne coach Jon Coffman admitted afterward that he’d never seen a shoe used to block a shot before.

“We talk about 'Whatever It Takes' to get a stop!” Coffman tweeted.

NOTABLE NUMBER

Zach Edey’s remarkable knack for drawing fouls is a huge reason he’s the runaway favorite to repeat as national player of the year. He has attempted a national-best 11.6 free throws per game this season, the highest rate since TeamRankings began charting that statistic 17 years ago.

Fouling Edey may be preferable to giving up a sure two points, but it isn’t a sound strategy. The 7-foot-4 Purdue center is shooting a career-best 75.9% from the foul line. Edey fouled out two Alabama bigs last Saturday and made all 11 of his free throws en route to a 92-86 victory over the Crimson Tide.

If any team is capable of defending Edey without fouling, it might be Purdue’s next opponent. Top-ranked Arizona will throw a pair of 7-footers at Edey. Oumar Ballo commits fewer than three fouls per 40 minutes and Motiejus Krivas is even better at defending without fouling.

ONE LAST THING

Turns out McNeese State isn’t shying away from hiring Will Wade on the heels of the cheating scandal that cost him the LSU job. The school leaned into Wade’s outlaw image on Monday with a video celebrating Wade’s imminent return from a NCAA-mandated 10-game suspension.

Give McNeese State credit for its audacity if nothing else. If you’re going to hire a coach who is still serving a two-year show-cause penalty for bribing recruits, you might as well embrace the backlash.