By Lucas Quick – Spear Reporter | Sophomore guard Sydni Summers prepares to drive against Lincoln College in an exhibition match on October 30 (photo by Iber Moreno – Spear Photographer)
San Jose State began its season campaign with a 55-36 win over Xavier Tuesday in Cintas Center at Cincinnati, Ohio.
It was a struggling start for SJSU, who shot 24.4% from field goal range. But the Spartans revved their offense up in the final two quarters, shooting 51.9% from the field.
They outscored the Musketeers by 24 points in that span, with an 18-0 run in the third quarter.
“We got into a flow starting the second half,” SJSU head coach April Phillips said. “We played together, we competed for 40 minutes and it’s a really good start to our season.”
SJSU senior forward Djessira Diawara and sophomore guard Sydni Summers led the team in scoring with 11 points each.
The Spartans did a good job distributing the ball to the rest of the rest of the team, with three players in double figures. Diawara, Summers, and junior forward Finau Tonga.
Despite that, the Spartans were still sloppy in possession ending the night with 26 turnovers.
A large takeaway from the first game of the season was SJSU’s ability to grab boards, out rebounding Xavier 42 to 28. SJSU had five players with five or more rebounds, with junior guard Jasmine Singleton leading the way with six boards.
SJSU is scheduled to host its first home game against University of California, Berkeley at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Provident Credit Union Center.
