Stephan Gilling was on last night.  And by “on,” I don’t mean that he played efficiently, or scored in a variety of ways, or that he filled up the box score with hustle and effort.  I mean that Stephan Gilling is the player he is because he can flat-out shoot the basketball – from any spot on the court at any time, an unapologetic, no-conscience long-range assassin with nearly flawless form. The shot is notoriously streaky but always lethal. And last night, it was on.

Gilling led the way for the 49ers with 23 points on 7-12 three-point shooting (all of his field goal attempts were from three), including a six-minute stretch in the second half in which Gilling drilled five three-pointers.  In that run, his first three-pointer brought Long Beach State to within one; his fifth and final three put them up by ten, almost single-handedly willing the 49ers to a 75-74 home victory over UC Irvine to remain atop Northridge in the Big West standings.

While the Stephan Gilling Show commenced live at the Walter Pyramid, freshmen T.J. Robinson, Larry Anderson and Casper Ware played strong supporting roles with 14, 12 and 12 points respectively on 17-31 shooting, as Long Beach State overcame an uninspired first half that left them down by one at halftime.

But when Gilling came out gunning, it lit a fire under the ‘Niners.  Passing became crisper, the defensive intensity picked up.  UC Irvine overextended themselves to chase Gilling, which led to two Robinson layups and a wide-open Anderson jumper.  In short, Stephan Gilling was exactly what the team needed.

“We needed that boost,” Robinson said with his trademark ear-to-ear grin.  “Steph came in and caught fire. It opened up the game for others.”

And in the last home game of the season, a night reserved for recognizing the outgoing seniors, the real story was that of a streaky-shooting junior who pulled himself up after being benched earlier in the week.  Leading scorer Donovan Morris returned from a stress fracture in his foot, but played 12 minutes and didn’t score on three shot attempts, leaving the scoring load to anyone who could take it.  So Gilling did, redeeming his demotion to the bench by doing what he does best.  Seems that Stephan Gilling was, also, exactly what Stephan Gilling needed.

The win wasn’t all rosy, however.  The 49ers continued to have trouble with teams that can competently shoot jump shots, as Irvine shot 55.8% from the field and 10-18 from three-point range.  Good spacing, passing and patience took advantage of a Long Beach State defense that continues to over-pursue and fall out of position.  Coach Dan Monson acknowledged that the team has trouble recovering from defensive switches, which led to a rash of open Irvine shots.  It allowed the Anteaters to stay in the game despite being outrebounded, 32-19.

“It was more communication than an effort thing,” said Monson. “Irvine does a great job of not forcing threes, and they’re playing very well right now.”

They especially played well down the stretch last night, cutting a nine-point 49er lead to two in only 40 seconds while just over a minute remained in the game.  The 49ers fouled the Anteaters on two jump shots during that time, and also allowed a three-pointer to fall.  Gilling made two free throws to hold Irvine at bay, and it ended up making the difference as a Patrick Rembert three-pointer fell at the buzzer to officially give the 49ers a one-point win.

By any account, it was a crucial victory. The 49ers remain in first place in the Big West standings as they prepare to face off against second-place Cal State Northridge this Saturday.  Long Beach won the first meeting at home, and the game could have playoff ramifications as both teams fight to maintain their current 1-2 standing with just over a week before the Big West Tournament begins play.

“We need to win, and we want to win, and we’re going full force to win,” said Gilling.