MORAGA, Calif. – San Jose State men's basketball sophomore guard Omari Moore scored a career-high 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting, but it wasn't enough to help the Spartans keep up with the red-hot Saint Mary's Gaels. Saint Mary's won by a final of 96-61 to improve to 6-1 while the Spartans dropped to 1-1.
The tale of the first half was shooting percentages as the Spartans were stifled by the Saint Mary's defense as they were held to a 28.6 shooting clip. On the other side of the court, the Gaels were red hot, knocking down 22-of-32 from the field (68.8 percent).
Richard Washington scored the Spartans' first six points to keep the score tight at 10-6 at the game's first media timeout. However Saint Mary's went on a 16-2 scoring spree that gave the Gaels a 26-8 advantage before Caleb Simmons stopped the bleeding with a corner 3. Saint Mary's continued to see shots fall as they increased their lead to 57-27 at the break.
The second half saw some improved offensive numbers for the Spartans as they hit 39.4 percent from the field while Saint Mary's cooled down to 42.4 percent. Freshman Hugo Clarkin secured a new season-high with six points, all coming in the second half, and pulled down a team-best six rebounds. Fellow freshman Sebastian Mendoza also tallied a career-high with seven points on while junior Caleb Simmons chipped in six points with two triples.
For the second-straight week, it was Moore and Washington that led the Spartans offensive attack with 18 and 17 points, respectively. On top of his high-scoring night, Moore performed well all around with three assists and a pair of blocks.
The Gaels out-rebounded SJSU 45-26 and finished the game with a 55.4 percent scoring clip against the Spartans' 34.4. Four Gaels reached double figures with Dan Fotu leading the way with 17 points on 7-of-10 shooting. Saint Mary's win streak extended to six with the victory.
The Spartans return to action on Sunday with a 1:00 p.m. tip in San Luis Obispo against Cal Poly.
