Photo credit: @SJSUMBB

By: Ana Kieu

When it comes to the men’s basketball program, San Jose State was looking to make it two wins in a row at the Event Center on Saturday night versus the Southern Utah Thunderbirds. Unfortunately, the Spartans’ wish didn’t come true, and they dropped a 66-59 decision to the Thunderbirds.

Southern Utah was off to a good start. Andre Adams made a jumper in the paint, Dwayne Morgan made a layup and Adams followed up with another jumper.

San Jose State, however, got themselves back into the game. The Spartans were benefited by Brae Ivey’s jumper in the paint and Zach Chappell’s free throw on the fastbreak. San Jose State held a 21-18 advantage over Southern Utah at the 7-minute mark of the first half. At the time, Seneca Knight led the Spartans with 6 points and Michael Steadman had 5 boards.

The Spartans and Thunderbirds were tied at 31 apiece at the half. Steadman led the Spartans with 8 points and 5 rebounds. Knight had 6 points.

The second half felt and looked ugly for the Spartans. The Spartans trailed the Thunderbirds 37-34 at the 17:12 mark of the half. While the Spartans could’ve bounced back to beat or at least even the score versus the Thunderbirds, that never happened, which left most, if not all, Spartan fans shaking their heads and asking why their team was unable to beat the Thunderbirds.

Despite the tough loss, there were a few positive things to note about the Spartans. Oumar Barry left a lasting memory on the Spartan fans with back-to-back 3-pointers and Craig LeCesne did the same thing to give the Spartans a 40-37 lead at the 16:05 mark of the half. LeCesne then recorded a game-high 11 points–9 in the final 4 minutes–as the Spartans led the Thunderbirds 48-41 at the 12:24 mark of the half.

The Thunderbirds weren’t ready to back down just yet. The Thunderbirds went on a 7-0 run to tie the game at 51 apiece with 7:37 left in the half.

At the time of the final media timeout, it was still a tight game and anyone’s game for that matter. The Spartans trailed the Thunderbirds 58-53, but stayed put in a hole that they sort of dug themselves in.

Final: 66 Thunderbirds, 59 Spartans

Notes
San Jose State’s starting lineup: Michael Steadman, Brae Ivey, Zach Chappell, Seneca Knight and Oumar Barry.

Up Next
San Jose State makes a visit to Weber State on Thursday, November 15 at 5:30 pm PT.