Photo by Elliot Portillo/Cal Poly Humboldt Athletics

The Cal Poly Humboldt men’s basketball team continued to move up the California Collegiate Athletic Association standings with a sixth straight win on Thursday night.

But they had to fight for it.

The Jacks welcomed Cal State Monterey Bay to Lumberjack Arena and won in double-overtime by a score of 95-94.

The victory, coupled with a second straight loss for Cal State San Bernardino, moves the Jacks into a tie with the Coyotes for third in the conference with identical 9-6 records.

The six-game winning streak is the program’s longest since February 2015.

Aidan Fowler led the way for the home team and scored a career-high 27 points on 10-of-15 shooting while playing 41 grueling minutes. 

The freshman guard’s performance was crucial in helping Humboldt (13-7 overall) withstand a relentless effort from the Otters (6-14, 4-12 CCAA).

“What a game,” Humboldt head coach Chris Tifft said. “I thought Monterey Bay played extremely well, as I knew they would. We overcame a lot of adversity to finish with the win tonight. 

“We had some guys play a lot of minutes and fight through nagging injuries, but we found a way to come out on top. I told our guys that winning games when you don’t play your best is a sign of a team that believes and is improving. 

“We will have to get some rest and get healthy before we host Stanislaus State on Saturday. That will be another tough test for our guys.”

The Lumberjacks trailed by five at halftime but stormed back in the second half, outscoring the Otters 43-38 to force overtime. 

Humboldt held a narrow lead in the final moments of the second overtime, relying on clutch free-throw shooting to fend off Monterey Bay’s late push.

In addition to Fowler’s career night, Humboldt’s Rob Diaz III finished with 16 points and Josiah Sanders added 18 points and seven rebounds. 

The Jacks will try to make it seven straight wins when they host Stanislaus (9-12, 6-9 CCAA) on Saturday at 5 p.m.

The Humboldt women also were in action on Thursday and ended their seven-game losing streak with a 59-51 win over Monterey Bay.

The Jacks are now 5-10 in conference and 6-15 overall.