The562’s coverage of Long Beach State athletics for the 2025-26 season is sponsored by Marilyn Bohl.
It’s hard to evaluate the Long Beach State men’s basketball team these days. There’s been a lot of growth this season for second-year head coach Chris Acker, but it’s yet to show up significantly in the win column.
The Beach hosted UC San Diego for their Bold Week Big West Conference home opener on Saturday, and once again there were a fair share of positives against their highest-ranked opponent so far this season. Still, those positives weren’t enough to show up in the form of a win, as the Beach fell 80–74 in the LBS Financial Credit Union Pyramid.
“If we continue to focus and get better in areas that internally we know we have to get better at, and we fix some of the little mistakes we’re making down the stretch or in the middle of games, I think we’ll come out more successful at the end of these games,” Acker said. “I’m obviously not excited about the result, but I love the resiliency of my group and their mindset in these battles.”
It was another strong night for freshman guard Gavin Sykes, who finished with a game-high 20 points. Sophomore Petar Majstorovic added 18 points and six rebounds, and both players logged more than 35 minutes as part of a starting lineup that once again carried a heavy workload.
“Our starters played a lot tonight, and at the end of the day I want them to understand that we need all of them,” Acker said. “We’re trying to find consistency on the roster, where we know that every time a guy goes on the floor he’s going to give us what he’s supposed to give. I think we saw that a lot more in the San Diego game, but we haven’t been whole since that game. Guys just need to continue to get better and step up to make plays.”
Long Beach State matched UC San Diego in nearly every statistical category, which was reflected in a neck-and-neck first half. The Beach finished the night shooting 46% from the field, while San Diego shot 52%. The Tritons were far more efficient behind the arc, knocking down nearly half of their attempts from three-point range.
LBSU had its most promising stretch at the start of the second half, capped by an Isaiah Lewis three-pointer that gave the Beach their first lead since the opening minutes of the game. The Tritons responded with their best run of the night, going on an 11–0 surge to eventually lead by as many as 14.
“The starters gave us a great lift to start the half. My expectation is that when we sub, guys go in the game and the score continues to go up, and it didn’t,” Acker said. “So we put the starters back in with guys who were tired, and it’s hard. At the end of the day, we had a drop-off in the middle of the game when it’s most important, and you just can’t do that against a team like UC San Diego.”
The Beach had another promising push late in the game as they tried to play catch-up in the final five minutes. A huge three-pointer from Majstorovic even cut the lead to just four with 18 seconds left, but San Diego’s solid free-throw shooting down the stretch left the Beach without any room for a comeback.
“There are pieces missing on our roster that would allow us to go on longer stretches. There are just things that are hit and miss, and these miscellaneous things that nobody can see but that I identify as a coach and that players have to work through,” Acker said. “It’s about showing them what’s happening and taking place, and them responding, but also understanding that the game is 40 minutes long. When you’re playing against really good teams, they’re going to expose all of the mistakes you make.”
The Beach will look ahead to their matchup at San José State on Tuesday, and they won’t be back in Big West action until the new year when they host Cal Poly on Jan. 3.
