Tag: san jose

NHL podcast with Daniel Dullum: Hawks prospect punches official; Sharks get road win over Yotes; Seattle to get an NHL team; plus more

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secondcityhockey.com photo: Artur Kayumov will likely face a suspension by the KHL after delivering a hit to the head to an opposing player and punching a referee in the face Friday.

On the NHL podcast with Daniel Dullum:

1 Sharks outlast stubborn Coyotes for tough road win

2 It’s official: NHL expanding to Seattle

3 Maple Leafs’ William Nylander involved in car crash in Toronto

4 Blackhawks’ prospect punches KHL referee — 13-game suspension

Daniel does the NHL podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

SJSU returns to the win column with a 67-65 win over B-CU

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Photo credit: @SJSUMBB

By: Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Besides the home opener, not much has been going in the San Jose State Spartans’ favor in the men’s basketball world, but they had a game on Thursday night versus the Bethune Cookman Wildcats inside the Event Center and there was no way to avoid it.

Prior to the tipoff, Spartans head coach Jean Prioleau put together a starting lineup of Michael Steadman, Brae Ivey, Oumar Barry, Noah Baumann and Craig LeCesne.

The SJSU cheer team got things started, the crowd grew loud and both teams balled it out on the court. SJSU opened the scoring, thanks to LeCesne’s jumper in the paint just 18 seconds into the first period. Steadman followed up LeCesne’s opening score with a pair of free throws and a jumper in the paint. Barry also made his presence felt with a pair of free throws.

SJSU was doing just fine until B-CU made it a 1-point game and subsequently grabbed a 13-12 lead. Shawntrez Davis threw down the dunk to put the Wildcats on top. The Wildcats proceeded to build upon its lead, but the Spartans stayed in the game with Ivey’s jumper, Anigwe’s layup and Barry’s pair of free throws. The Spartans tied the game 20-20, thanks to Steadman’s jumper.

This matchup turned out to be a back-and-forth battle. Anigwe threw down a fastbreak dunk to put the Spartans back on top. Armani Collins hit a 3-pointer to make it a 1-point game in favor of B-CU. Anigwe tied the game 23-23 and Baumann made a fastbreak layup to help the Spartans to a 25-23 advantage. The Spartans had a 27-23 lead before the Wildcats took over to make it a 1-point game. LeCesne helped the Spartans to a 1-point lead, but it was short-lived as Leon Redd hit a 3 and a jumper to put the Wildcats back on top.

The ardent action winded down and SJSU trailed B-CU 35-32 at halftime.

SJSU picked up the pace to start the second period. Barry threw down a dunk and made a layup in the paint, Steadman made a layup and Baumann hit a fastbreak 3 to put the Spartans on top within the first five minutes of the second. But B-CU refused to back down as Malik Maitland hit a 3 to make it a 1-point game and Pope tied the game 41-41 with a free throw.

It was deja vu all over again as both teams engaged in another back-and-forth battle. Brian Rodriguez-Flores hit a 3 to give the Spartans a 44-41 lead, but Mark Gordon hit not only one, but two 3s to tie the game 44-44 and put the Wildcats up 47-44.

The crowd erupted in cheers as Baumann hit back-to-back 3s to tie the game 58-58 and put the Spartans up 61-58 late in the game. There was a slight scare as the Wildcats hastily responded, but Ivey hit a 3 of his own to put the Spartans back on top 64-63.

The game went down-to-the-wire, but SJSU hung in there. Steadman made a layup to give the Spartans a 1-point lead with 39.4 seconds left. The Spartans played defense, which worked this time as B-CU missed as time expired.

SJSU defeated B-CU 67-65. With the win, SJSU notched its second win on the season and snapped its 6-game losing skid.

SJSU concludes its homestand next Saturday, Dec. 15 vs. Northern Arizona. Tipoff is set for 7:00 pm PST.

San Jose State preps for Bethune Cookman in hopes of getting back into win column

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Photo credit: sjsuspartans.com

By: Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose State Spartans’ men basketball team often practices and plays to the catchy song of “Let’s Go” by Calvin Harris ft. Ne-Yo, but this week gives the song a whole new meaning as San Jose State has to get back in the win column after six straight losses. Like Ne-Yo sings in his verse “Let’s go. Make no excuses now. I’m talking here and now.”

Now, let us tell you what you need to know prior to SJSU’s tipoff vs. Bethune Cookman Thursday night on KLIV 1590 AM with Justin Allegri.

Game No. 8
Bethune Cookman (4-4) vs. San Jose State (1-6)
Thursday, Dec. 6, 7:00 pm PST
Event Center (5,000)
San Jose, Calif.

Pregame with Prioleau
Spartans head coach Jean Prioleau will be the subject of the second “Pregame With Prioleau” held Friday, Dec. 7, at 7:30 am PST in the Spartans Men’s Basketball Team Lounge inside YUH on campus. Fans in attendance will have the opportunity to hear from Prioleau as he recaps the season thus far and looks forward to what is next.

Cost is $25 and involves a full breakfast. Free street parking is available. To RSVP, email Blake Sasaki at blake.sasaki@sjsu.edu

Live stats
Spartan fans can view live stats of all SJSU men’s basketball games, home and away, by accessing the Live Stats feature at www.sjsuspartans.com. Click on the link on the women’s basketball schedule page to follow the action.

All-access passport
The Mountain West Network is your all-access passport to Spartan Athletics. For live and recorded video/audio of SJSU men’s basketball home and Mountain West road contests, the Mountain West Network is your home. Go to Mountain West Network logo at top of the Spartans Athletics home page or go to www.sjsuspartans.com/video.

Newcomers
SJSU’s top five scorers are all newcomers led by the junior transfer trio of Brae Ivey (13.3), Michael Steadman (13.3) and Craig LeCesne (10.4). Freshmen Seneca Knight (6.1) and Christian Anigwe (6.0) round out the list.

In case you missed it 
SJSU dropped to 1-6 as Indiana State went off for 86 points after shooting 76 percent from the floor in the half and finishing at 64 percent for the game. SJSU found little success on their end of the scoresheet, converting just 30 percent from the field.

Winning the boards
Prioleau preaches the importance of winning the boards, and his team has taken care of business in that department thus far. SJSU currently leads their opponents in rebounding margin at +3.7 and have particularly strong on the offensive boards, ranking second in the conference (12.4 per game).

Steady Steadman
JUCO transfer Michael Steadman is off to a hot start at his new home at SJSU. He currently ranks 5th in the conference in total rebounds per game (8.9) and is riding a five-game streak of double digit scoring. He was named to the Junkanoo Jam All-Tournament team after averaging 11.7 points and 7 rebounds per game. Steadman has two of the team’s three double-doubles this season.

Second season for Prioleau
Prioleau is entering his second season at the helm of SJSU men’s basketball and is coming off his first full offseason with the program. Prioleau was hired on Aug. 4, 2017, and given just three months to prepare for his debut season. Now with a full offseason under his belt to prepare the team, Prioleau and his staff are excited about the team’s potential.

Staff shakeup
Jean Prioleau made some changes to his staff in the offseason as he brought in former NC State All-American Julius Hodge as an assistant coach. He also promoted director of basketball operations, Ryan Cooper, to assistant coach.

First ever meeting between the teams
Bethune Cookman’s stop at the Event Center is the second of a three-game California road trip. The Wildcats will face St. Mary’s on Tuesday and finish at Cal Poly on Saturday, Dec. 8. Entering the road trip, they are 4-4 with wins over Trinity Baptist (104-44), Johnson University (97-47), Stetson (84-74) and Florida Atlantic (72-70). They’re averaging 75 points per game and have limited opponents to just 38.9 percent shooting from the field.

Thursday’s game will be the first meeting between the programs.

Big Game Baumann
SJSU sophomore Noah Baumann is once again displaying his impressive 3-point shooting abilities this season after finishing in the top-40 in the Mountain West in that department as a freshman. He’s currently 12-of-23 from downtown for a 52.2 percent clip that ranks third in the conference.

Barracuda shoot down Gulls with 5-3 win

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Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Barracuda scored two unanswered goals early and then three unanswered late in the game to take down the San Diego Gulls 5-3 on Monday evening at SAP Center. They have now won three games in a row and sit atop the Pacific Division with 29 points.

Kyle Wood scored the game-winning goal at the 6:45 mark of the third period when Francis Perron led him with a pass into the San Diego zone. With the help of a screen from Alexander True, Wood fired a shot from the point past Gulls goalie Jared Coreau (3-4-2) for his first goal of the season. Wood finished with a two-point night (1G, 1A).

“I’ve been trying to chip in any way possible,” said Wood. “It’s nice to see that one finally go in. (It) only took 18 or 19 games. So it was a big relief.”

San Jose (13-3-1-2) drew first blood early into the first period. Kyle Wood skated in along the right boards, fed a wide open Alex True, who beat Coreau top self into the upper left corner of the goal for his fifth goal of the season at the 3:53 mark. Keaton Middleton received the secondary assist.

Wood made an excellent defensive play to stop a goal from San Diego (8-8-1-1) three minutes after assisting on True’s goal. Troy Terry was able to keep inside the Cuda zone when San Jose failed to clear the puck. He fed a pass to the left slot to Kalle Kossila, who had a wide-open net to shoot at. Wood made a diving save with his body to keep the score 1-0 in favor of San Jose.

San Jose dominated play in the penalty-free opening frame as they outshot San Diego 16-5.

San Diego had a short-handed scoring chance just before the halfway mark of the second period from Joseph Blandisi, but Cuda goalie Josef Korenar (8-1-1) was able to stop Blandisi’s wrist shot without giving up a rebound.

San Jose extended its lead to 2-0 when Nick DeSimone had possession of the puck along the right boards and threaded a pass into the middle of the crease where captain John McCarthy re-directed the puck past Coreau for his fifth goal of the season at the 12:16 mark. Rourke Chartier received the secondary assist.

San Jose closed out the middle frame with the ice tilted in their favor as they outshot San Diego 14-7.

San Diego cut the lead in the half early in the third period when Devin Sideroff won a battle behind the net and fed a pass over to a wide open Alex Dostie, who was all alone on Korenar and snapped a back-hander into the lower right corner of the net for his first goal of the season at the 2:17 mark. Ben Thomson received the secondary assist. Luke Schenn received the secondary assist.

It didn’t take long for the Gulls to get the equalizer 13 seconds later. Blandisi fought his way to win a battle and sent a pass to a crashing Chase Deleo, who corralled the puck and tapped it home past Korenar for his fifth goal of the season at the 2:30 mark.

“They scored those two quick goals and we just kinda stuck with it,” said Cuda head coach Roy Sommer. “We get down, guys buckle in and they get mad. They want to continue the success we’re having.”

Evan Weinger gave the Cuda san insurance goal when he finished off a pretty 2-on-1 chance burying the puck past Coreau into the upper right corner for his fifth goal of the season at the 11:19 mark. Matt Fonteyne skated in along the left boards and sent in a pass right to the tape of Weinger, who made no mistake about it as Coreau never had a chance in making a save. Jeffery Truchon-Viel received the secondary assist.

Steve Olesky immediately went after Weinger in frustration with Truchon-Viel coming to the aid of his teammate. Both Truchon-Viel and Olesky received matching roughing penalties.

True scored his second goal of the night on an empty netter with the Gulls having pulled Coreau with over three minutes remaining in the game. Jon Martin fed the puck over to True who did a spin-o-rama before cashing in with his sixth goal of the season at the 17:11 mark.

Terry completed the scoring when he beat Korenar with a point-blank shot that went top-shelf after taking a feed from Blandisi from behind the net. Terry’s eighth goal of the season came at the 18:42 mark.

Korenar finished the game, making 19 saves on 22 shots for the victory. Coreau made 32 saves on 36 shots in suffering the defeat.

GAME NOTES: San Jose was 0/2 on the power play. San Diego never received a power play opportunity. 

This was the first of 10 meetings between the two teams, including twice more in December. San Jose was 4-3-1-0 against San Diego last season and are now 14-12-3-2 all time against them.

San Jose have allowed a league-low 44 goals this season and are now currently first in the AHL in goal-differential with +25. The Iowa Wild are second with +23.

The announced attendance was 3,092.

UP NEXT: The Barracuda head south to Bakersfield to take on the Condors on Saturday, Dec. 8 at Rabobank Arena at 7:00 pm.

San Jose Sharks podcast with Len Shapiro: Breaking down the Sharks’ four-game losing streak; Head to Montreal Sunday

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photo from mercurynews.com: The San Jose Sharks Erik Karlsson (65) made his return to Ottawa since being traded to the Sharks last season. Karlsson faced against his old team the Senators Saturday as his former teammates look on Dylan DeMelo (2), Thomas Chabot (72), and Ryan Dzingel (18)

On the SJ Sharks podcast with Len:

#1 Going through some of the Sharks troubles on this current road trip where they’ve lost four straight, are newer players and call ups who are trying to adjust to the chemistry a work in progress and lots of turnovers?

#2 What’s it been like for the goaltenders Aaron Dell and Martin Jones on this trip and how have they not made the big saves?

#3 They started the road trip with a 6-0 loss in Vegas last Sunday then lost two one-goal games in Buffalo and Toronto and took a tough four-goal loss to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday.

#4 How is the top line of Joe Thornton, Evander Kane, and Joe Pavelski who are split up to the Sharks’ current top line of Logan Couture, Tomas Hertl, and Timo Meier?

#5 Playing back-to-back games Saturday in Ottawa and Sunday in Montreal, Ottawa in seventh in the Atlantic handled the Sharks well forcing them to turn over the puck and the Sens were able to poke the puck through the Sharks defense for the four-goal win 6-2.

#6 Today was the California Golden Seals hockey lunch that Len attended a reunion of former Seals players, broadcasters and staff. Also, the Seals boosters had a tribute at SAP Center that was unforgettable two seasons ago–dedicated to former players, broadcasters, front office staff and former media relations manager our very own Len Shapiro.

Len Shapiro does the SJ Sharks podcasts each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose State slumps to sixth straight loss, 86-57, to Indiana State

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Photo credit: @SJSUMBB

By: Ana Kieu 

SAN JOSE, Calif. — After five straight losses, the San Jose State Spartans were hoping and praying for a win over the Indiana State Sycamores on Wednesday night inside the Event Center. 

Yes, home court advantage exists for a reason. The Spartans’ record may not reflect that, but Spartan nation was loud and proud as they sported the blue and gold. In addition, the Spartan marching band and Spartan cheer squad put on excellent shows to entertain us. 

Anyhow, ISU won the tipoff and SJSU’s home game went underway. ISU opened the scoring as Clayton Hughes hit the first 3-pointer of the first half. SJSU hastily responded as Noah Baumann hit a 3 of his own to tie the game. 

But ISU made themselves look like the tough guys. The Sycamores went on a 6-0 run before Oumar Barry made a free throw to help the Spartans pull within 5 at the 16:20 mark of the half. Michael Steadman followed up with a free throw of his own to reduce the Sycamores’ deficit to 4 just 10 seconds later. 

At the second media timeout, SJSU trailed ISU 13-8, which wasn’t too bad, but the Spartan defense could’ve done a better job at slowing down the Sycamore offense in the first 10 minutes of the half.

SJSU showed some more life in the second 10 minutes of the half. Seneca Knight made a layup and Steadman made a jumper in the paint.

However, ISU refused to back down. Allante Holston made a jumper of his own, which also happened to be in the paint. Tyreke Key then made two layups before Christian Anigwe responded with a layup in the paint to re-excite Spartan nation. 

The Spartans’ lack of scoring certainly didn’t look any better late in the half. At the final media timeout, SJSU was on a 4-plus minute scoring drought and trailed ISU 28-14 with 4:29 left in the half. 

SJSU was happy to see Barry’s layup and Brae Ivey’s jumper, but ISU continued to pour in the points from all directions on the court. Ivey made a pair of free throws, but his efforts weren’t enough to help the Spartans, who trailed the Sycamores 44-20 at halftime. Baumann led the Spartans with 6 points, 1 rebound and 1 block. Ivey had 4 points and 1 steal. Barry and Steadman scored 3 points apiece, while Anigwe and Isaiah Nichols scored 2 points apiece. These stats were far from impressive, but Baumann was a bright spot for the Spartans.

The Sycamores remained hot in the second half. Devin Thomas made a pair of free throws and Key scored on two consecutive possessions to record 16 points by the 16-minute mark of the half. After a Devin Thomas score and a foul, ISU went on a 6-0 run to make it a 56-27 game at the 15:47 mark of the half.

Ivey ended the Sycamores’ run with a 3-pointer. Ivey’s 3 also signaled the start of the reduction of the Spartans’ deficit. Then, Zach Chappell happened. Chappell made two pairs of free throws–the first on the fastbreak and the other on the regular. But it was too little, too late, as the Spartans’ deficit increased to 30 at the 10:08 mark of the half.

Anigwe’s free throw and Barry’s pair of free throws brought the Spartans within 29 with 8:46 left in the half. Yep, Barry heated up, but this was still a tall order for the Spartans to complete against a Sycamores team.

SJSU lost to ISU 86-57. Steadman led the Spartans with 13 points, 3 rebounds and 1 block. Ivey had 12 points and 1 rebound. Barry had 11 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. Knight added 7 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound and 1 block. 

Notes 
Spartans’ starting lineup: Michael Steadman, Brae Ivey, Oumar Barry, Noah Baumann and Craig LeCesne. 

Up Next 
The Spartans continue their four-game homestand with game No. 3 next Thursday, Dec. 6 versus the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats at 7:00 pm PT. 

San Jose State returns to the hardwood on Wednesday vs. Indiana State

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Photo credit: sjsuspartans.com

By: Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE, Calif. — San Jose State men’s basketball returns to the hardwood on Wednesday evening to host the Indiana State in a nonconference game as the second of four straight home games played inside the Event Center. SJSU looks to snap a five-game losing skid, while Indiana State looks to make it four wins in a row.

Here’s what you need to know about San Jose State vs. Indiana State.

Game #7
Indiana State (3-1) vs. San Jose State (1-5)
Wednesday, Nov.28, 7:00 pm PT
Event Center (5,000)
San Jose, Calif.

Live Stats
Fans can view live stats of all SJSU men’s basketball games, home and away, by accessing the Live Stats feature at www.sjsuspartans.com. Click on the link on the women’s basketball schedule page to follow the action.

Video Streams
The Mountain West Network is your all-access passport to Spartan Athletics. For live and recorded video/audio of SJSU men’s basketball home and Mountain West road contests, the Mountain West Network is your home. Go to Mountain West Network logo at top of the Spartans Athletics home page or go to www.sjsuspartans.com/video.

New Look Spartans
SJSU’s top five scorers are all newcomers led by the junior transfer trio of Brae Ivey (13.5), Michael Steadman (13.3) and Craig LeCesne (11.8). Christian Anigwe (6.5) and Seneca Knight (6.0) round out the list.

Last Time Out
SJSU dropped their last game vs. Santa Clara by a final of 71-63. Although SJSU saw an improvement in rebounding margin (+15) and turnovers (11), they shot just 38.1 percent from the field and were unable to hold off the Broncos.

Success on the Boards
The Spartans rank second in the Mountain West in offensive rebounds (12.8) and fifth in defensive rebounds (27.3). Against Weber State (11/15), SJSU pulled down 48 total boards, the fourth-most in the Mountain West this season. The Spartans won the rebounding battle vs. Santa Clara 45-30.

Steady Steadman
JUCO transfer Michael Steadman is off to a hot start at his new home at SJSU. He currently ranks 3rd in the conference in total rebounds per game (9.8) and 28th nationally. He was named to the Junkanoo Jam All-Tournament team after averaging 11.7 points and 7 rebounds per game.

Steadman is coming off one of his best games of the season, dropping a career-high 21 points and 11 rebounds vs. Santa Clara. It is his second double-double of the season.

Full Offseason for Prioleau
Spartans head coach Jean Prioleau is entering his second season at the helm of SJSU men’s basketball and is coming off his first full offseason with the program. Prioleau was hired on August 4, 2017, and given just three months to prepare for his debut season. Now with a full offseason under his belt to prepare the team, Prioleau and staff are excited about the team’s potential.

Staff Shakeup
Jean Prioleau made some changes to his staff in the offseason as he brought in former NC State All-American Julius Hodge as an assistant coach. He also promoted director of basketball operations, Ryan Cooper, to assistant coach.

Scouting Indiana State
The Sycamores of Indiana State are currently 3-1 and on a 3-game win streak–Green Bay (78-74), McKendree (80-63) and Western Kentucky (63-54). They boast a pair of dynamic scorers in Jordan Barnes (20.3 ppg) and Tyreke Key (19.3 ppg). Indiana State is led by Greg Lansing in his ninth season at the helm.

Luck of LeCesne
Junior transfer Craig LeCesne currently boasts a five-game streak of double-digit scoring: Southern Utah (15), Weber State (10), CSU-Bakersfield (13), Central Michigan (13) and Santa Clara (13).

Barracuda come back to cool off Heat 4-2

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Photo credit: @sjbarracuda

By Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Barracuda scored four unanswered goals, including three in the second period, to come back from a two-goal deficit to defeat their Nor Cal rival the Stockton Heat 4-2 at SAP Center on Tuesday afternoon.

It was San Jose’s fourth victory over Stockton this season. It snapped their two-game losing streak and they have at least one point in their last four games. They regained the top spot in the Pacific Division.

Stockton (10-10-1-0) turned up the heat on San Jose just 46 seconds into the game. Alan Quine drew first blood when he scored his sixth goal of the season when his shot went past Cuda goalie Josef Korenar (7-1-1) . Dalton Prout and Kerby Rychel received assists.

Rychel made it a two-goal lead for Stockton on the power play early in the second period. With Manny Weiderer in the sin bin for holding, Rychel wristed a shot past Kornear for his 10th goal on the season at the 2:35 mark. Glenn Gaudin and Curtis Lazar received assists on the goal.

San Jose (11-3-1-2) answered back 22 seconds later to start a rally of four unanswered goals. Jon Martin was set up by Francis Perron and snapped a wrist shot past Heat goalie Jon Gillies (4-7-1) for his first goal on the season at the 2:57 mark.

Defenseman Jacob Middleton tied the game less than three minutes after Martin’s goal. Middleton received a pass from Thomas Gregiore and his shot from the left point snuck past Gillies for his second goal of the season at the 5:47 mark. Perron received the secondary assit for a two-point game.

Nick DeSimone gave the Cuda their first lead of the game when he received a cross ice pass from Rourke Chartier. DeSimone skated in a few feet from the blue line and blistered a shot past Gillies inside the left post. Dylan Gambrell received the secondary assist.

Despite being out shot 27-12 through two periods, San Jose was happy trading quality over quantity with three goals on just 12 shots.

Korenar made a great glove save on a point blank chance by Buddy Robinson with 2:25 left play in the game that prevented Stockton from getting the equalizer. 

Keaton Middleton, brother of Jacob, iced the game with an unassisted empty net goal with 17 seconds left in the game for his second goal of the season.

Korenar played a solid game, making 30 saves on 32 shots for his seventh victory. Gillies made 15 saves on 18 shots in suffering the loss.

GAME NOTES: San Jose was 0/4 on the power play. Stockton was 1/2.

The game’s faceoff started at 11am. The early start was due to the 2nd annual Cuda Classroom Day where kids from the area were treated to the hockey game.

The announced attendance was 4,353.

UP NEXT: The Barracuda travel up to Stockton take on the Heat on Saturday, Dec. 1 at 6:00 pm PT at Stockton Arena.

San Jose State had an awful season, but there’s always next year

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Photo credit: sjsuspartans.com

By: Ana Kieu

SAN JOSE, Calif. — You know what they always say: “There’s always next year.”

That’s what Spartan nation said last year after head coach Brent Brennan’s lowly 2-11 (1-7 MW) record in 2017. But this year wasn’t much better. In fact, it was numerically worse than 2017, as we saw a hapless 1-11 (1-7 MW) record in 2018.

So what’s next for the Spartans? Only time will tell if the coaches on the coaching staff will be on the hot seats and if any players on the roster will request trades to other colleges.

But for now, let’s shift our attention to Brennan’s final press conference of the season in Simpkins Stadium Center on Monday afternoon. Here’s my Q&A with Brennan.

1. Last week, you said that the Spartans had to win the turnover battle to have a chance to beat Fresno State. The Spartans did that in both halves, but they fell short in the end. What went wrong in the loss?
I think when you’re playing a team like Fresno State, who is playing at such a high level and so mature, your margin for error is very slim and I think we made just too many mistakes in both offensive and defensive situations.

We came out at halftime behind 3-0 and we got the ball, so I was feeling great about how our players responded in that first half–rivalry game on the road and all that. I was really feeling great about how we were playing on defense. I knew we had to get something going on offense, and you saw us insert Chance LaChappelle a little bit–trying to give us a little bit of a spark in his running.

But I think what we found was that the team we were playing was better than us and it was that simple. We got our work cut out for us coming into this offseason to get into a place where we can finish those games in the fourth quarter next year that we didn’t finish this year.

2. Michael Carrillo had his first 300-yard passing game at the major college level in his final game as a Spartan. That was an incredible feat that I’m sure he’ll remember for years to come, but now, the seniors will be replaced, so what are a couple of things that you’re going to look for in future quarterbacks on the NLI Signing Dates?
We’re going to recruit quarterbacks in this class.

I think the good news is that we have Josh Love coming back. He played really well at times this year and we all saw a lot of growth in him and I’m really encouraged by that. He was able to throw the ball effectively. I think he did a really nice job pushing the ball down the field with some of those big throws that he completed.

And then, Chance LaChappelle. We had him run around for a little bit, so Chance is learning; and with that new redshirt rule, he wasn’t able to get out there since he was still technically a redshirt even though he played in the game.

Then, obviously, Montel (Aaron). Montel was working through his family thing and getting locked back into school and the team and all that stuff.

We’re heavily recruiting five or six quarterbacks, so I think that’s going to be an important position as we get into the next three weeks.

3. There were many defining moments this season, but what were your top five most memorable moments?
My top five most memorable moments? That’s a big question!

I’d say my first favorite moment was the locker room after the UNLV game. It was just incredible in there and just that feeling of seeing how those players felt winning that game. I thought that was just really, really special.

I think that the blocked field goal at Oregon was a big moment. I think that game was kind of a big moment because of how we responded. We were on the road against one of the toughest environments in the country to play in and we had just gotten beaten badly by Washington State on the road, so how our team responded was exciting.

I thought it was special on Senior Day. I was disappointed we didn’t get the win, but just seeing those players and their families and letting them know how much they meant to us and how much we cared about them, that was really special.

I think after Army, we came in here and met at 6:00 AM as a team and that was a big moment for us. Everybody was here, everybody was locked in. We kind of talked about redefining what we want going forward because that game was really hard and it disintegrated so quickly. And then we came back and played the heck out of San Diego State the next week. We had another game where we were tied in the fourth quarter and just needed to make one more play or one more tackle or one more block to win against a really good opponent.

I can think of a million different things, but that’s four for you and that’s good enough, right?

San Jose State gets embarrassed at home as Santa Clara picks up first win of the season 71-63

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Photo credit: @SJSUMBB

By: Ana Kieu 

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Just like the football program, the men’s basketball program for San Jose State Spartans hasn’t fared well. 

San Jose State got swept by all three of their opponents at the Junkanoo Jam in Bimini, The Bahamas and returned home to host Santa Clara inside the Event Center on Saturday afternoon. Santa Clara entered the game as a winless team, so this increased San Jose State’s chances of getting their second win of the season.

Spartans head coach Jean Prioleau announced his starting lineup, which consisted of Michael Steadman, Brae Ivey, Oumar Barry, Noah Baumann and Craig LeCesne–all of whom are talented big men. 

As expected, San Jose State won the tip and unleashed their power on Santa Clara. The Spartans went on a 10-2 run to open the first half. This led the Broncos to call a timeout.

Santa Clara refused to get stomped over and responded with a few 3-pointers to cut San Jose State’s lead to 4, 18-4, at the 10:59 mark of the half. The Broncos’ persistence didn’t stop there as they trailed by just 3, 23-20, at the media timeout with 7:49 left in the half. Spartan fans were thankful for Steadman and Ivey, who led the Spartans with 7 points apiece.  

Baumann hit a 3 and Steadman made 2 layups to help the Spartans get back on top with a 7-point lead, 30-23, with 4:19 left in the half. Still, the Broncos were persistent and quickly responded as Henrik Jadersten made a layup of his own to reduce the Spartans’ lead to 5, 30-25, just moments before the final media timeout of the half. The Spartans, however, held onto that 5-point advantage and Spartan fans thanked Steadman, who led the Spartans with 11 points and 6 rebounds, for keeping the home team in the game.

But the Spartans’ lead was short-lived as the Broncos went on a 6-0 run to end the half. The Broncos tied the game at 35 apiece, thanks to Tahj Eaddy’s game-tying 3. Not only that, Eaddy followed up with a layup and a free throw to put the Broncos up 38-35 at the half. 

Despite the 3-point deficit, San Jose State had some things to be proud of. Steadman had already tied his career-high with 15 points and 8 rebounds.
Ivey added 7 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds for the Spartans. 

At the first media timeout of the second half, the scoreboard showed that it was still a 3-point game for either team to rise above at the end of the game. LeCesne hit a 3 and the Spartans trailed the Broncos 45-42 at the 16:50 mark of the half.

The Broncos led by 5, 51-46, at the 11:58 mark of the half. Of course, the Spartans weren’t happy with the deficit, but Steadman continued to impress the Spartan fans by increasing his stats to 17 points and 9 rebounds. 

Both teams exchanged shots for crucial points that kept the game close throughout the half. The Spartans trailed by 8, 69-61, with 1:29 left in the half. The Broncos then extended their lead to 10, 71-61, with 47.6 seconds left on the clock. Steadman put in a jumper to give the Spartans an extra 2 points, but Steadman’s attempt made no difference. 

The Spartans lost to the Broncos 71-63. 

The Spartans host the Indiana State Sycamores on Wednesday, Nov. 28 at 7:00 pm PT.