The Big West Tournament MVP has elevated his game for The Beach, who take on second-seeded Arizona in the West Region first round Thursday in Salt Lake City
Long Beach State’s Aboubacar Traore celebrates with a piece of the net after The Beach defeated UC Davis in the championship game of the Big West Tournament on Saturday, March 16, 2024, at The Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nevada. Two months before he produced the first triple-double in Big West Conference Tournament history, Aboubacar Traore nearly did one better, finishing a rebound shy of a “quadruple-double.
Just as importantly, LBSU qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2012, earning the 15th seed in the West Region, where it will take on second-seeded Arizona in the first round at 11 a.m. PT Thursday in Salt Lake City. Along the way, Traore began making strides as a playmaker, averaging 1.3 assists as a freshman, 3.5 as a sophomore and 4.5 this season.
A five-game skid to end the most recent regular season prompted Monson to pull Traore aside again last week, shortly after Monson informed his team that His calmness and execution at the line were night and day compared to when he was a freshman and shot 6 for 18 during nonconference play and 57.1% for the season.
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