By Matt Weiner (@mattweiner20) – Spear Reporter | Photo by Titus Wilkinson
Regression was to be expected for SJSU men’s basketball this season. How could it not? The Spartans entered 2023-24 campaign without four players who played a pivotal role in last season’s unprecedented run.
But when SJSU jetted to a 5-2 start this year it signified maybe, just maybe, the step back wouldn’t be a big one. Then came the current three-game losing streak. This, of course, leaves room for an unsettling inquiry: Was SJSU’s hot start an act of deception? Other than UC Irvine, none of its wins came against stiff competition.
Now at 5-5, SJSU must finish its non-conference slate strong so it doesn’t plummet back into irrelevancy come Mountain West play. Should it, SJSU won’t notch back-to-back postseason bids for the first time in school history.
Outside of Fresno State (No. 299 in NET), no conference team has a lower NET ranking than Abilene Christian and Cal Poly: two teams SJSU conceded late leads to.
Following the Cal Poly loss – the first leg of the three game losing streak – SJSU head coach Tim Miles said, “You hope it’s not a symptom of a larger problem in the program or an unwillingness to build on a lead and play the type of defense necessary to win tough-minded games.”
Three days later – as Miles framed it – SJSU ‘got its butts kicked all night’ by a mediocre Montana which was then followed by an overtime loss at North Dakota State.
As losses have piled up, it’s clear SJSU must improve in two facets: late-game management and defense.
When SJSU won 20 games for the first time since 1981 a year ago, it allowed 75 points in a contest just five times.
This year? Four times and each one resulted in a loss against teams nearly in the bottom half of the NET.
The departure of 2022-23 Mountain West Player of the Year Omari Moore is an easy explanation for this switch-up. But the absence of last year’s front-court staples in Robert Vaihola, Sage Tolbert and Ibrahima Diallo is a major factor, too.
Just 10 games in, the transition to sophomore seven-footer Adrame Diongue, sophomore William Humer and freshman Diogo “DJ” Seixas hasn’t been a seamless one.
Counted on to be a difference maker, Diongue, who played just six minutes for Washington State last year, has yet to notch double figures in either scoring or rebounding. Despite starting all 10 games, his penchant for foul trouble has led him to play at least 25 minutes just once.
If SJSU had the NIL budget to retain Diallo (now at UCF), Miles might not have to give Humer and Seixas, who have no prior Division I experience, consistent minutes.
Should SJSU’s defense remain an issue, it might not have the offense to compensate for it.
In its five wins, SJSU drilled three-pointers at a 41.3% clip but since the second half against Cal Poly have shot a meager 25.5% from deep.
Improvement on both ends must start this Saturday at 2 p.m. against New Orleans, which ranks at the bottom 15% of the NET.
In an ideal situation, Diongue walks the fine line of being aggressive without getting into foul trouble and earns his first double-double. Meanwhile, South Carolina transfer Trey Anderson catches fire to ascend from his mini shooting slump. The result could free up junior guards MJ Amey and Alvaro Cardenas to continue to dazzle.
But if SJSU can’t gain momentum against New Orleans, Montana and Santa Clara, what will happen when Mountain West plays starts? After all, eight of SJSU’s matchups come against teams in the top-50 of the NET. Could Colorado State (No. 8) hand SJSU a loss that eclipses the 36-point one the Rams handed the Spartans at home in 2021?
If adjustments aren’t made now, things can feel awfully familiar awfully quickly.