If San Jose State needed a response game after the stumble against UC Irvine, they delivered one with authority for at least the first-half.
The Spartans basically opened with their sharpest half of basketball this season, overwhelming San Diego with an avalanche of pace, pressure, and shot-making in an 86–69 win.
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The Spartans shot a blistering 66% in the first half, racing out to a 52–34 half-time lead. Guards Colby Garland and Jermaine Washington combined for 28 before halftime with Yaphet Moundi anchoring the interior with power touches and elite positioning.
It was all Spartans early with a 15-0 opening punch. In the early minutes, Washington opened with a long two-pointer, followed by a three and the race and pace was on. Forward Sadraque NgaNga hammered home a dunk shortly after, while Moundi cashed in free throws to continue the Spartans’ sprint.
With San Jose’s pressure defense, the Toreros didn’t get their first bucket until almost five minutes in.
“I thought we set the tone early. We were very good defensively, very solid offensively; with that big start,” said head coach Tim Miles.
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6’6”, 205 lb forward Adrian Myers finished with a career-high 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting, became the firestarter off the bench with a notable inside-out game.
Every time USD offered a flicker, Myers smothered it. Miles even admitted he nearly subbed Myers out after a pair of turnovers, but in the time Miles had to wait, the sophomore caught fire: “He goes and hits a three then gets another and I’m saying, ‘I can’t take him out now’.”
By halftime, SJSU’s seven-man rotation was humming with three Spartans in double digit scoring. By game’s end, four Spartans were in double figures.
But the second-half was something else for the Spartans.
USD opened 2-for-9, but once they found rhythm, the Torero’s full-court presses and half-court traps junked the game up for the Spartans; ultimately forcing SJSU into 18 turnovers overall.
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What had been a clinic turned into a slog, but more often that not, that’s the ugliness or beauty of basketball.
Miles explained the shift bluntly: “They started scoring. They were pressing us a little bit, and we had some foul trouble and our lineups were a little awkward, considering we were short on guards.”
After leading by 28 points at one point, the Toreros carved the lead down to 15 multiple times, especially once SJSU hit a scoring wall with only 18 second-half points deep into the frame.
Even Garland, steady all night with 20 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists, had to burn a timeout against a trap at the eight minute mark that he could see coming a mile away.
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Though Miles and team knew the USD presses were coming, it caused fits for the Spartans.
But Myers delivered momentum killers on the Toreros. A deep three in front of SJS’ bench with 12:05 left pushed the lead to 67–46 momentarily halting the Toreros’ surge.
Yet, it was Moundi who sealed it late. The junior forward had a block on one end, then went coast-to-coast for a tough and-one finish to push the lead out to 18 with under three minutes left. Moundi finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, outmuscling USD for every loose ball.
Grinding through the ugly
Though San Jose still won comfortably, the locker room vibe per Miles was honest: “It’s always good to win a game. But we’re also telling ourselves, ‘We need to get better at this, this, and this.’”
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Garland echoed that the rotation is still evolving, especially considering the injuries: “We’re clicking at times but still figuring things out; just trying to see what five can play the hardest.”
But at the least, a near-term mission was accomplished.
The Spartans got a big the bounce-back win, four players hit double figures, the defense dominated early, and the stars delivered when turbulence hit.
Not a perfect win. “A much uglier second-half for Spartans” as Miles described it, but maybe still a necessary one in the learning and gelling process.
After some shooting struggles the last few games, the Spartans absolutely needed to make shots tonight and they delivered.
