Nathan Canilao (@nathancanilao) – Men’s Basketball Beat Reporter
The San Jose State men’s basketball team (7-3, 0-0 MW) defeated CSU Bakersfield (4-5, 0-0 Big West) 58-48 on Tuesday night at Provident Credit Union Event Center.
Sophomore point guard Alvaro Cardenas led all scorers with 10 points while snatching six rebounds.
Junior center Ibrahima Diallo recorded a near double-double as he scored nine points while grabbing 11 rebounds.
“I was happy about how our guys responded … We had a tough week of travel so it was good to come home and get a win,” said SJSU head coach Tim Miles.
The Spartans got off to a slow start. The team went into the halftime break with just 25 points and were tied with the Roadrunners going into the second half.
No Spartan had more than two made field goals at the end of the first half and they shot 28% from the field as a team.
SJSU started to find its stride in the second half. They went on a 16-10 run that shifted momentum into the Spartans’ favor.
At the 18:08 mark of the second half, SJSU junior guard Omari Moore scored on a one-handed dunk over a CSU Bakersfield defender that got the crowd going.
On the very next possession, Diallo caught a lob pass for a dunk that sparked SJSU’s offense.
The Spartans shut out the Roadrunners’ offense for much of the second half and coasted to a 10-point victory.
SJSU’s defense held the Roadrunners to 33.3% shooting from the field for the entire game.
Despite SJSU’s poor shooting night, Spartans’ senior forward Sage Tolbert III was content with the team’s performance.
“Sloppy game, I’m just happy we got the win,” said Tolbert III. “It was not a fun game to play and it was a grind. I’m just happy we got to pull out the W.”
The Spartans bounce back after a blowout loss to No. 9 Arkansas on Saturday. They will travel to face cross-town rival Santa Clara University on the road Saturday at 2 p.m.