Navin Sunjay Krishnan (@NavinKthespear) – Women’s Basketball Beat Reporter
The San Jose state women’s basketball team (0-2, 0-0 MW) suffered a frustrating home loss 71-63 Sunday afternoon against a confident Cal State Fullerton Titans team (1-1), extending SJSU’s losing streak to two in a row.
“The message was just to play hard,” said head coach April Phillips in her Spartan home debut. “Nothing mattered but how we bounced back.”
Playing without graduate student center Semaj Smith, the Spartans recorded 13 steals against the Titans.
On the offensive side of the ball, senior guard Jada Holland ignited the Spartans’ energy, torching the Titans early for eight points in the first quarter.
The Titans were lead by junior guard Gabi Vidmar who scored eight points and boarded six rebounds late in the second quarter. Vidmar finished the game with 16 points and 7 rebounds.
SJSU held the Titans to 35 percent shooting in the first half and led 34-30 against CSU Fullerton at halftime.
The blue-and-gold showed glimpses of smart defense including a plethora of charges drawn to protect their slim lead. The Spartans’ energy kept the game close, pushing the pace going into halftime.
“You saw in the first half we had a lot of fast-breaks,” Holland said. “That was the game plan. Try to trap them and turn them over.”
In the second half, Holland led by example by relentlessly attacking the basket and keeping the defense on its heels.
Although SJSU kept the tempo under control, excessive fouling on defense would be a burden. Spartans’ head coach April Phillips called a timeout with around five minutes left in the third period and the game even 38-38.
“I think it’s counterproductive when you let your opponent take thirty shots from the free-throw line,” Phillips said.
SJSU and CSU Fullerton played out a back-and-forth rock fight that ended in a 50-50 tie game going into the fourth period.
SJSU dug themselves into a hole, turning the ball over and fouling at crucial moments and put the Titans in the bonus with 5:06 left in the game.
Missed layups haphazardly decimated the Spartans’ chances of winning.
“The biggest thing for me was that we were 19-for-52 from the field,” Phillips said.
“We’re a first-year team, first-year coach,” Holland said. “Just being able to build chemistry. That’s what this season is for.”
When one final push was needed with a 67-62 SJSU deficit with 26.8 seconds remaining in the game, the Spartans were unable stop the Titans without fouling and offensively hit a wall.
“I think the problem was that we fouled too much,” Phillips said. “I think what we can learn from this is attention to detail.”
SJSU women’s basketball will aim to gain some momentum when it squares off against Cal State Northridge on Nov. 19 in Northridge, Calif. for their second road game of the season.