Santa Cruz Shows Heart but Falls Short as Remix Rule the Opener 120-107

Santa Cruz Warriors can’t get by the Rip City Remix in the season opener on Fri Nov 7, 2025 in G League action on Fri Nov 7, 2025 (photo by Santa Cruz Warriors)

Fri Nov 7, 2025

By Brien Gingrich, Santa Cruz Voice

SANTA CRUZ–6:59 PM. The house lights drop at Kaiser Permanente Arena, and the buzz is back — a new G-League season on the coast. But opening night didn’t wait long to turn rough.

7:04 PM. Nearly three full minutes tick off the clock before the Warriors finally get on the board. Rip City Remix race out ahead, drilling open looks and pounding the glass. The home crowd keeps trying to will Santa Cruz into rhythm, but the rim feels sealed shut.

End of 1st. Rip City 40, Santa Cruz 21. The Remix are getting anything they want — downhill drives, corner threes, second-chance buckets.

Mid-2nd. L.J. Cryer finally steadies the offense with a couple of pull-ups, and Marques Bolden starts to make his presence felt inside. Still, every Santa Cruz surge gets answered by Blake Hinson or Dillon Jones.

“We dug ourselves a hole early,” said head coach Lainn Wilson. “They came out hitting, and we were chasing from the start. You can’t spot a team twenty and expect to climb back. That’s on us.”

Halftime. Rip City 70, Santa Cruz 48. The crowd wants something to cheer for, but the Warriors head to the locker room needing a reset more than a pep talk.

3rd Quarter. Santa Cruz finds a pulse. Cryer takes command — step-back three, floater, a feed to Bolden for a dunk. The communication tightens on defense, the hustle picks up, and the lead dips under twenty for the first time since the opening frame.

“I thought we responded well after halftime,” Wilson said. “The talk on defense got better, we went after loose balls, and we started to win the effort plays that define games in this league.”

4th Quarter. Jack Clark ignites off the bench — 17 points with fearless drives — and Trey Galloway adds steals that flip the tempo. The Warriors trim it to single digits, but fatigue and execution catch up late. Rip City hits clutch jumpers and closes it out.

“It’s the first one of the year, and you can tell guys are still finding their legs,” Wilson admitted. “The pace in this league is relentless. That’ll come with reps.”

Final. Rip City Remix 120, Santa Cruz Warriors 107. Cryer leads with 25 points and 7 assists, Bolden posts 15 and 8, Galloway adds 15 and 3 steals. The Warriors actually win the second half — 59-50 — but the early drought was too much to overcome.

Postgame, Wilson’s tone was even — disappointed but forward-looking. “The group’s disappointed, but that’s good,” he said. “It means they care. We’ve got another shot tomorrow, and the focus now is to clean up the first-half mistakes and build on that second-half fight.”

-Brian