By: Aaron Johnson (@voz_aaron1)- Spear Reporter | photo by Aikman Fang – The Spear
San Jose State (6-5) defeated New Orleans (4-5) 87-82 with help from freshman forward Diogo “DJ” Seixas who scored 11 points, all of which came in the final seven minutes of the game.
SJSU head coach Tim Miles loved the late game spark Seixas provided.
“If you would’ve told me your last sub of the game is going to lead you to victory, how often does that happen?” Miles said. “That’s really what happened.”
Despite only playing 13 minutes, Seixas was able to swing the game in San Jose State’s favor.
With 4:21 left on the clock, Seixas hit a big layup and got fouled on the play. The crowd erupted and junior guard Alvaro Cardenas was so fired up he gave Seixas a big shove.
“DJ is amazing we love him,” Cardenas said. “He’s been struggling a bit in the beginning, but especially as a freshman it’s not easy to come in figure it out. But we know he’s going to figure it out.”
Cardenas had a double-double on the game scoring 16 points and totaling 10 assists. With his totals on the night, Cardenas has now moved into 10th place all-time in SJSU assists.
San Jose State is a team with a lot of freshman depth, so for Miles it has been an emphasis to try and get them minutes whenever he can.
“I thought (this game) was huge for his confidence,” Miles said. “Our freshmen have taken on a lot, the scheme, the complexity of the defensive gameplan, and how we are attacking on offense. Sometimes I think it’s a little overwhelming.”
While Seixas’ late game heroics put the Spartans over the top, they wouldn’t have even been in a position where that was possible with junior guard Myron Amey Jr.
Amey put up a season-high 29 points, including a three-minute stretch in the first half where he caught fire and scored 11 straight points. Amey almost single handedly brought SJSU from down 10.
SJSU snapped its three-game losing streak against New Orleans but now the Spartans have to deal with senior forward Trey Anderson being out of the starting lineup with a knee injury. With Anderson out, Miles spoke on the possibility of Seixas seeing minutes in the starting lineup.
“Everything’s open, we’re not performing well enough for me to sit here and say these are the six or eight guys I’m playing,” Miles said. “I think everyone on this team has a chance to make a contribution.”
For its next game SJSU will rematch Montana (5-4) who beat the Spartans 75-58 in their last matchup. The game will take place at the Provident Credit Union Event Center on Dec. 17 at 2 p.m.