James Ennis had 24 points and 13 rebounds as Long Beach State clinched the Big West Conference regular-season championship with a 77-76 victory over host UC Davis on Thursday night.
In UC Davis' first nationally televised home game (ESPN2), Long Beach State survived a last-second three-point attempt by Ryan Howley that went in and out.
The 49ers (18-11, 14-3) are the first school to win three straight outright Big West regular-season titles since UNLV reeled off seven straight from 1982 to 1989.
Corey Hawkins scored 34 points for UC Davis (14-15, 9-8) before leaving the game late with a leg injury.
The Aggies outshot the 49ers from the field (51 percent to 44 percent), beyond the arc (11 of 21 vs. 8 of 21) and at the free-throw line (11 of 13 to 9 of 12). But Long Beach State dominated the rebounding battle 42-25.
The 49ers trailed by seven points with 7:20 remaining but used a 16-4 run to lead 75-70 with 2:48 left.
Montana 63, Sacramento State 52 in Missoula, Mont. – Jordan Gregory scored 21 points as Montana maintained its hold on first place in the Big Sky over Sac State.
The Grizzlies (22-6, 18-1) lead Weber State by one game with one game remaining in the regular season for each team.
Kareem Jamar added 12 points for Montana, which played again without starters Will Cherry and Mathias Ward because of foot injuries. Cherry, the team's leading scorer, has missed the last three games and also is expected to sit out the regular-season finale Saturday against Northern Arizona. Ward is out for the season.
John Dickson led Sac State (14-14, 8-11) with 15 points.
Women
Sac State 84, Montana State 50 – The host Hornets (17-11, 12-7 Big Sky) matched their Division I record for wins after pummeling the Bobcats (16-12, 10-9), Sac State reported. The Hornets' Alle Moreno led all scorers with 19 points.
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