By Austin Turner –– Content Editor
In the first ten minutes of San Jose States’ bout with Saint Mary’s, the Spartans had the Gaels right where they wanted them. The remainder of the half didn’t go as well.
After a Noah Baumann 3-pointer brought the Spartans within two points at 19-17, the Gaels went on a dominant and impressive 25-0 run to close off the first half. The Spartans didn’t score a single point in the last 10:46 of the opening period. The score was 44-17 at the half, thanks in part to 13 first half turnovers committed by the Spartans.
The Gaels weren’t quite as dominant in the final 20 minutes, but they didn’t need to be. They outscored the Spartans by 3 in the second half to give the Spartans a 3-9 non conference record after the 75-45 loss.
The 30 point margin is the biggest loss of the season for the Spartans, and 45 points is easily the lowest output by its offense so far. Oumar Barry was the leading scorer with just 11 points.
Shooting was the biggest difference in the game. The Spartans shot 32 percent from the field, its second lowest total of the season. The Gaels shot 48 percent.
Saint Mary’s was led by sophomore guard Tanner Krebs, who had 20 points off of the bench on 6-9 3-point shooting. Junior guard Jordan Ford, the third-best scorer in the nation, was held to a modest 16 points on 7-13 shooting. He was just 1-5 from beyond the arc.
This game will likely be a wake up call for the Spartans, who have now lost three straight, after two close losses to Pac-12 competition.
They will open up Mountain West Conference Play on Wednesday, January 2 when the rival Fresno State Bulldogs visit the Event Center at 7 p.m.
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