Cal Poly men's basketball hosts Fresno State tonight

Fresno State (6-7) at Cal Poly (3-6), 7 p.m. in Mott Gym

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GAME NOTES: The Fresno State Bulldogs try to halt a two-game slide tonight as they close out the 2008 portion of their schedule with a non-conference meeting against the Cal Poly Mustangs at Mott Gym in San Luis Obispo. Since winning four of five outings, the Bulldogs have bowed in two straight, both of those games taking place during the Las Vegas Holiday Classic. First it was an 84-65 blowout loss to Creighton, followed by a narrow 56-52 setback versus Saint Louis back on December 23rd. Meanwhile, the Mustangs have posted a total of only three wins the entire season, the last of them coming against Portland State at home back on December 17th. The most recent outing for the program was against Cal State Bakersfield on the road last Tuesday, a meeting that resulted in a narrow 66-64 loss for Cal Poly. As far as the all-time series between these two programs is concerned, FSU leads by a count of 27-6 and has won 11 in a row over the Mustangs.

Fresno State never held a lead in the meeting with the Billikens, shooting just 3-of-11 behind the three-point line and turning the ball over 14 times in the close call. Sylvester Seay was the only double-digit scorer for the Bulldogs as he dropped in 18 points, adding eight rebounds along the way as well. Dwight O'Neil had a decent stat line with nine points, seven boards and four of the unit's seven assists, but other than that the team was less than impressive. Although he failed to have a strong game against Saint Louis, Paul George remains the leading scorer for the program with his 15.3 ppg, shooting not only 54.5 percent from the floor, but also 50.9 percent behind the three- point line at the moment. Seay and O'Neil account for 13.2 and 12.4 ppg, respectively, the latter also pulling down nearly five rebounds per game and leading the Bulldogs with his 67 assists.

In a game that saw eight ties and 12 lead changes, Cal Poly led by two points with under a minute to play against Bakersfield, thanks to a jumper by Titus Shelton. However, the defense couldn't hold as the home team knocked down the game-winner in the final seconds to claim the two-point victory. Shelton finished the night 5-of-8 from the field and 8-of-10 at the free-throw line for a game-high 18 points, followed by Shawn Lewis with 13 and backup David Hanson 10 points in just 15 minutes off the bench. The Mustangs outscored Bakersfield at the free-throw line 16-5 and forced 21 turnovers, but that still wasn't enough. One of three players scoring in double figures at the moment, Shelton leads the group with his 11.6 ppg on 48.7 percent from the field, but shooting only 30-of-52 (.577) at the free-throw line makes him a prime target when opponents need someone to foul. Lorenzo Keeler accounts for 10.1 ppg, but his miserable 31.8 percent accuracy from the floor brings the entire team down to just 39.7 percent.

This would be the perfect opportunity for Fresno State to get comfortable on the road, taking on a team that is destined to have problems the entire season against strong defenses.

Game info.: Fresno State (6-7) at Cal Poly (3-6), 7 p.m. in Mott Gym

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