ROHNERT PARK, Calif- In his final game at Seawolf Gym, senior
J.T. Tipton became Sonoma State's all-time leading scorer. The Watsonville native's 26-point performance led the Seawolves to an exciting 58-53 win over Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday night in Rohnert Park. Tipton finished the night with 1,542 points, eclipsing Creedence Perkins' 16-year old scoring record. The win completes a season sweep over the Roadrunners for SSU as they improve to 13-11, 12-8 CCAA. CSUB drops to 14-13, 13-7 CCAA.
Tipton shot 10-of-16 from the field and also grabbed 11 rebounds. Already the school's all-time leading scorer, Tipton's performance was a fitting home finale for one of SSU's all-time greats.
"It was great to be able to break the record in front of my friends and family. This has been a wonderful atmosphere to play in and I feel on top of the world," said Tipton after the game.
Said SSU head coach
Pat Fuscaldo, "This is a major accomplishment for J.T. and the team. As a post player, he relies on his teammates to get him the ball. I feel J.T. proved he is the best in the league tonight."
As for the action on the court, it was just as exciting as the record breaking performance. After SSU got out to a 7-2 lead, the 'Runners used a 12-0 run to go up 14-7. SSU would battle back to take the lead, but another run by the 'Runners late in the half put them up 33-31 at the break.
After a quick 'Runner basket grew the lead to four less than a minute into the second half, SSU went on a 9-0 run to take a 40-35 lead. SSU pushed the lead up to 11 with 10:39 left at 49-38 and then cruised in for the win. CSUB would be able to cut the lead to three with under two minutes left, but a
Barry Weiss layup set the final margin at 58-53.
Sonoma State got 13 points in a supporting role from
Andrew Kochevar. Kochevar hit his first three three-pointers of the night to bring his consecutive three-pointer string to 12 in a row. On Thursday night he hit nine three-pointers to set the school record.
Dwuan Rice led the 'Runners with 22 points and six rebounds.
The Seawolves close out the regular season next weekend when they travel to Cal State Stanislaus (Thursday) and Chico State (Saturday).
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