By Alex Valle — Content Editor
What a way to start.
San Jose State men’s basketball came out victorious against Hofstra in the 2019 season opener by a score of 79-71.
The Spartans (1-0) were clear underdogs in this matchup as the Pride (0-1) was an 18-point betting favorite.
SJSU saw a huge contribution from junior guard Richard Washington who led the team with 23 points and added seven rebounds and three assists off the bench.
After a slow start in the first half, he caught fire in the second.
Washington was efficient from the field, shooting 6-of-8 as he dropped 16 of SJSU’s 45 points.
He was on the court for 32 minutes, the most of any Spartan, and will likely be in the starting lineup for the next game.
Sophomore guard Seneca Knight and senior forward Craig Lecesne returned to the Spartans with bigger expectations than they had last season.
With the departure of sharpshooter Noah Baumann and big-man Michael Steadman, head coach Jean Prioleau looked to Knight and Lecesne as offensive threats as they both drew starts in tonight’s game.
Knight scored 13 points and had a career-high in rebounds with eight.
Lecesne posted a double-double of 19 points and 11 boards. It was the first of what should be many double-doubles for the big man.
He also added four assists to his stat line which tied with senior guard Brae Ivey.
The Spartans saw a lot of passing from Lecesne last year and could be a great dynamic addition to this offense if the big man can keep dishing the ball.
The biggest takeaway from this win was the efficient shooting and rebounding.
Although the Spartans shot a measly 31.8 percent from three-point range, they shot an outstanding 47 percent from the field.
As for rebounding, SJSU grabbed 47 boards in comparison to the Pride’s 33, which gave the Spartans numerous second-chance opportunities.
It will be interesting to see how Prioleau will incorporate other players who performed poorer than expected.
Sophomore guard Zach Chappell was on the court for only six minutes and contributed nothing on the stat sheet.
Chappell closed out last season as he started the final nine games averaging eight points and four assists in that stretch.
The Spartans could use help at the guard position considering most of their offense came from their forwards.
It’s only the first game of the season and a lot will change in the coming weeks as the Spartans face-off against tough non-conference opponents.
However, this was only Prioleau’s ninth win since he took over the reins and any win to start off the season is a step in the right direction.
The next chance to see if the Spartans can continue their competitive play will be Sunday, Nov. 10 at 2 p.m. as Portland travels to San Jose for SJSU’s home opener.
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