Duke basketball: Get to know the Cal State Fullerton Titans

Get to know Duke basketball’s NCAA Tournament opponent, the Cal State Fullerton Titans. 

There is a good chance that many Duke basketball fans do not know the upcoming Round of 64 opponent for the Blue Devils, the Cal State Fullerton Titans.

Cal State Fullerton is the champion of the Big West Conference and earned a No. 15 seed in the NCAA Tournament after its 72-71 victory in the conference championship game against Long Beach State.

The Titans did not allow Long Beach State to get a shot off on its final possession with stifling defense to earn its fourth NCAA Tournament appearance and its first since 2018.

Cal State Fullerton was the No. 2 seed in the Big West Tournament while the Beach were the No. 1 seed.

Led by head coach Dedrique Taylor, in his eighth year at the helm of the program, Cal State Fullerton has not lost since March 3 when the team lost back-to-back games against UC San Diego and UC Riverside.

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EJ Anosike is the heart and soul of the Titans as he led the team with 22 points and eight rebounds in the Big West Championship Game and averages 16.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per game on 51.8-percent shooting from the field.

Anosike is a transfer from Sacred Heart and spent last season with Tennessee, in which he only averaged 8.5 minutes per contest.

Damari Milstead is the only other double-digit scorer on the Titans with 12.1 points per game on 36.9-percent shooting from 3-point range.

Cal State Fullerton only shoots 33.0-percent from downtown as Jalen Harris leads the team at a 42.4-percent clip on the season.

Duke basketball should be able to wear down Cal State Fullerton

Dedrique Taylor only had a seven-man rotation in the conference championship game and has been relying on those seven players throughout the postseason.

Lado Laku is the tallest player on the Titans’ roster at 6-foot-10 but does not see much playing time while Vincent Lee and Anosike, at 6-foot-8 and 6-foot-7, respectively, are the tallest players that get extended minutes for Cal State Fullerton.

Duke will have a major size advantage with the combination of Mark Williams, Paolo Banchero, and Theo John, and it could be relatively easy for the Blue Devils to dominate the glass and the paint on Friday night.

Tipoff is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. EST from Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina.