SAN JOSE, Calif. –San Jose State men's basketball played a hard 40 minutes, but was unable to maintain their first half momentum in a 71-59 loss to No. 25 Utah State Wednesday evening at the Provident Credit Union.
Despite the loss, SJSU showed glimpses of what they are capable of being in front of a national audience. The game was broadcast on ESPN2, and was the first home game featured on ESPN since 2011.
The Spartans (3-6) played one of their best halves of basketball of the season in the opening 20 minutes. SJSU knocked down six 3-pointers as part of a 44 percent shooting performance (11-of-25). Balanced scoring was the name of the game as seven shooters scored from the hardwood. The defense also showed out as they held the potent Aggie offense in check and surrendered just two triples. Utah State struggled at the charity stripe in the period going 4-for-10.
Trailing by three at 19-16 with 8:26 in the first, freshman Omari Moore made the first of two huge blocks as he turned Utah State's Brock Miller away on back-to-back attempts. The Pasadena native corralled the second of those and hit a wide open Trey Smith for a corner 3-pointer to tie the game at 19-19. Richard Washington scored on the ensuing posession to give SJSU the lead outright. The teams then played back-and-forth ball for the remaining 7:28 of play with Utah State's Sam Merrill scoring with :02 remaining to take a 36-33 lead into the break.
In the second period, both offenses took a step back with both shooting a 41 percent clip and made just two 3-pointers. The biggest difference was a 9-0 Aggie run to take a 48-37 with 13:32 on the clock that allowed them to take control of the scoreboard. Craig LeCesne put an end to the spree with four unanswered points and SJSU chipped the lead back down to six with 9:05 remaining, but the Aggies quickly regained control and did enough to keep the Spartans at bay for the duration. Utah State led by as many as 15 in the waning moments before a 3-ball by Seneca Knight knocked the deficit to 12 at the final buzzer.
Utah State won the rebounding battle 42-34 while SJSU fared slightly better in the shooting department. The Spartans finished 21-for-49 (42.9 percent) while the Aggies shot 28-for-66 (42.4 percent).
Seneca Knight was the Spartans' leading scorer with 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Moore continued to show flashes of how good he can be with another standout performance, especially on the defensive side of the ball. The Pasadena native had four blocks and five assists to go with four points. Christian Anigwe chipped in eight points and six rebounds.
On the other end of the floor, Justin Bean's double-double of 18 points and 14 rebounds led the way for Utah State. Sam Merrill (14), Alphonso Anderson (12) and Diogo Brito (10) also reached double figures in the win.
SJSU returns to action this Sunday as they take on San Diego State in San Diego. Tip-off is slated for noon at Viejas Arena.