Long Beach State cruises past UC Santa Barbara 66-48 (Feb 18, 2017)

By AP
Published

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (AP) Evan Payne made four 3-pointers and scored 22 points to help Long Beach State beat UC Santa Barbara 66-48 on Saturday night.

Justin Bibbins had 14 points and seven assists and Roschon Prince added 11 points and eight rebounds for the 49ers (13-16, 8-5 Big West). Eric Childress led the Gauchos (4-21, 2-11) with 13 points.

Long Beach State had a 12-3 run capped at 63-44 by Justin Bibbins' pair of free throws with 2:04 left.

The Gauchos got the deficit no closer than seven in the second half.

The 49ers took the lead for good at 21-19 on Payne's 3-pointer with 8:38 left in the first half. That sparked a 13-2 run capped at 31-21 on a Prince dunk with five minutes left in the half. UC Santa Barbara had a five-point lead early in the first half.